"Stop the war. Submit to me, or die."
The words, amplified by Kyurem's draconic might, thundered across the battlefield.
An overwhelming pressure descended from the heavens, vast as a collapsing mountain. The air itself seemed to freeze, crushing down upon every living being, stealing breath, pinning souls in place.
The Thunder Zebra shrieked and collapsed to the ground, its legs giving way as it trembled uncontrollably. Its rider, the kingdom's foremost general, Worth, was torn from the saddle and slammed to his knees, his body shaking violently as he struggled merely to remain upright.
On the walls of Twin Dragon City, Sharon and Kran went pale.
Within the city, countless civilians rushed out into the streets, drawn by instinct, fear, and awe.
At this moment, every gaze turned upward.
There, in the sky, hovered a godlike figure.
It was as though an ancient legend had stepped out of myth, a hero riding a dragon, descending from the heavens, freezing the battlefield in an instant, halting the tide of slaughter, and standing between the world and chaos.
Just looking at that figure filled Sharon with an irresistible urge to submit.
"My lord!" Kran cried, his voice trembling. "What… what is Prince Lucien trying to do?!"
Sharon forced himself to remain composed, though his heart pounded wildly.
At this moment, he understood clearly.
Prince Lucien was no longer watching from the sidelines.
He was entering the struggle for the throne.
That dragon.
A dragon capable of freezing tens of thousands in a heartbeat.
Even if Twin Dragon City mobilized every last soldier, they would be utterly powerless before such a being.
"My lord… what should we do?" Kran whispered desperately.
Sharon did not answer.
Instead, his gaze fixed upon the battlefield below, upon General Worth.
The man drove his greatsword deep into the earth, using it to force himself back onto his feet.
"For the glory of Prince Landon!" he roared.
Raising his blade high, he declared war upon the god in the sky.
Lucien watched in silence.
If it were Geralt in that position, he would likely make the same choice.
To stand and fight, even knowing death was certain.
For warriors like that, dying on the battlefield was not tragedy, but honor.
Respect was due.
But mercy would not be given.
"Kyurem," Lucien said quietly.
"Understood."
Kyurem let out a deep, resonant roar.
An icy beam colder than death itself erupted forth, sweeping across the battlefield and engulfing Worth completely.
There was no scream.
When the frost finally dissipated, only a humanoid sculpture of solid ice remained, frozen forever in a final stance of defiance.
Then Lucien's gaze shifted.
It fell upon Sharon and his butler, Kran.
"Master!" Kran gasped, terror flooding his face as he imagined the same fate befalling them.
Sharon swallowed hard, his throat dry.
After witnessing the general's end, he lifted his head toward the sky and spoke, his voice echoing through the unnatural silence.
"Prince Lucien… are you also here to join this war?"
The question rippled outward.
Civilians, Pokémon, Soldiers.
All eyes lifted skyward.
Lucien's gaze swept slowly across the land below.
He saw children clutching their parents, faces white with fear. Slaves with hollow eyes and emaciated bodies.
Old women wrapped in patched, threadbare clothes. Refugees who had lost their homes to war.
Humans and Pokémon alike, maimed, crippled, broken.
They looked up at him not with hope, nor hatred.
But emptiness.
Waiting.
Lucien exhaled slowly.
He had seen this scene too many times.
For ordinary people, war brought only loss.
When the fighting ended, nobles feasted in their gilded halls, dividing spoils beneath crystal chandeliers, while the common folk were left with nothing but graves, flowers, and memories of the dead.
For this land, war meant only pain and tears.
And as a transmigrator, as someone with the power to change all this, Lucien had only one desire.
To act in a way that would let him face his own conscience without regret.
He looked down at the people below and slowly spoke, his voice echoing across the land.
"Everyone, I am the third prince of the kingdom, Lucien."
"I have come here today not to start a new war, but to stop it."
"What can war bring us? Nothing. Almost every day, people and monsters lose their lives because of it."
"The soldiers who participate in the war will lose their lives. But have you ever thought about this? Your parents, your children, your fiancées are waiting for you at home, unable to sleep because of their constant worry."
"The common people will lose their children. The children you carried for ten months and raised with such care. You will never see their smiling faces again."
Hearing these words, the common people in Twin Dragon City could not help but be shaken.
Their children.
Their children had been forcibly conscripted into this war not long ago.
They were children they had raised with joy and devotion, and now they did not even know whether they were alive.
Not only the civilian parents, but even the soldiers below showed hesitation and turmoil on their faces.
At this moment, as they heard Lucien's words, the soldiers uncontrollably thought of their parents, of their fiancées waiting for them to return, of how their families had watched them grow from children into adults.
Right now, those people must be worrying endlessly.
If they died here, they would never return home.
They would never see their loved ones again.
How much grief would that bring?
"Therefore, we should not fight for this," Lucien's deep voice echoed across the battlefield and into their hearts.
"We share the same blood. We should live like brothers. Humans and monsters alike have shared this land for thousands of years."
"I do not wish to start a new war. I am here to stop it."
"In the past seven days, Ripple Town, Blue Wave City, Black Territory, Lacunosa Village, and Hinoki Castle have submitted to me. The flames of war have been extinguished, and both humans and monsters have returned to peaceful lives."
"Follow me, and Kyurem and I will protect you."
"From now on, there will be no more war and no more slavery on this land. Everyone can live freely and equally."
"Humans and monsters alike."
"I swear in the name of royalty that in my kingdom, no one will ever again harm monsters. Monsters will live alongside humans in towns."
"Humans and monsters will use each other's strength to begin a new life together."
Silence descended upon the battlefield.
The eyes of the commoners and the Pokémon present trembled with disbelief.
Then someone shouted from the crowd.
"Lucien!"
A second voice followed.
Then a third.
"Lucien! Lucien! Lucien!"
If you can stop the war, then bring peace back to this land.
The purest wishes in the hearts of humans and Pokémon rose into the air, turning into cries and shouts that echoed across the plains.
Sharon, standing atop the city wall, looked at the civilians behind him and let out a helpless smile.
"Your Highness Lucien. It seems our resistance is meaningless. From this moment on, Sharon and Twin Dragon City will obey your commands."
Lucien nodded slightly.
Kyurem surveyed the battlefield, its gaze calm and distant. With a single thought, the ice binding the soldiers shattered with sharp cracking sounds.
Weapons clattered to the ground.
Soldiers and armored Pokémon stared at one another in stunned silence.
Though frozen, they had heard everything. They had heard every word Prince Lucien spoke.
The war here was over.
For a long moment, no one moved.
What should they do now? Return to Prince Landon's army?
Or stay here?
They exchanged uncertain glances.
Finally, their eyes lifted toward the figure riding the dragon in the sky.
"All humans and magical beasts who no longer wish to participate in this war, go to Lucien City under my rule. Someone there will accept you. While you are there, go and see the humans and magical beasts living together. I think you will find your answer."
Lucien City? What kind of place was that?
Many soldiers had never even heard of it.
Lucien turned his gaze to Sharon and said,
"Sharon, you will send men to escort these soldiers and magical beasts to Lucien City."
"Yes, Your Highness," Sharon replied. He hesitated for a moment, then asked, "And what will Your Highness do next?"
Lucien understood his meaning and replied calmly,
"The war continues, and many places within the kingdom still await my rule."
At present, he was using absolute power to bring these territories under control. Governance could come later, once the war was completely ended.
As for whether the nobles and lords were truly loyal, Lucien did not care.
If anyone rebelled, he would simply ride Kyurem and descend before them.
That alone would be enough.
In this way, losses could be minimized.
After giving Sharon several additional instructions, Lucien mounted Kyurem and flew toward the next destination.
After he departed, Sharon and Kran stood atop the city wall, watching his figure fade into the distance.
Kran could not help but murmur, "My lord, are we truly going to betray Prince Lance?"
"What betrayal?" Sharon raised an eyebrow. "No matter who wins in the end, it makes little difference to us. Prince Lance, Prince Landon, and Prince Lucien are all sons of the Kingdom of Eindoak. This is ultimately a struggle for power between brothers."
"Besides…" Sharon's thoughts drifted back to everything he had seen in Lucien City. "Now that I think about it, perhaps Prince Lucien is more suited to rule this land."
Both Prince Lance and Prince Landon were too extreme, as if they existed solely to oppose one another.
After pondering for a moment, Sharon changed the subject.
"All right, Kran. The most important matter now is settling the refugees from Twin Dragon City."
"Also, send food supplies and crop seeds from Twin Dragon City along with the soldiers to Lucien City."
Kran paused. "My lord, why is that?"
"With so many people arriving all at once, Lucien City will likely face food shortages," Sharon explained. "Since we are now under His Highness Lucien's command, we should do our part."
That way, if His Highness Lucien ultimately won the war, he would remember what Twin Dragon City had done today.
Hearing this, Kran immediately understood.
"My lord is wise," Kran said. "I will make the arrangements at once."
...
The distance between Twin Dragon City and Lucien City was not great.
After several days of arduous travel, this force of fifty thousand humans and Pokémon finally arrived at their destination.
Lucien City.
After Sharon's men conveyed their purpose and the identities of these people to the old king, Elif quickly took charge of settling the soldiers and Pokémon.
In the end, the group was divided into two parts.
One portion of the soldiers and Pokémon joined the Lucien City army under Geralt's command.
Another portion, consisting of soldiers and Pokémon who no longer wished to fight, became civilians. They settled in Lucien City and began living ordinary lives.
This sudden surge in population placed a heavy burden on Lucien City.
There were shortages of housing and food, and with winter approaching, such a large population would also consume an enormous amount of firewood.
How to deal with these issues became one of the main daily concerns for Elif and the old king.
Fortunately, Lucien had anticipated this situation before leaving and had already left behind several solutions.
First, a work-for-relief system was implemented. Soldiers and civilians could participate in the construction of Lucien City, helping to build new houses and infrastructure, and would receive wages from the city administration.
Second, efforts were made to bring the soldiers' families to Lucien City, giving them peace of mind and a sense of belonging.
Third, the autumn harvest was used to resolve the food shortage.
With the additional supplies of grain sent from Twin Dragon City, the food problem for the soldiers and refugees was quickly alleviated.
With the combined efforts of these soldiers and their Pokémon, the scale of Lucien City began to expand at a visibly rapid pace.
The residents of Lucien City were already experienced in handling such growth.
The influx of population greatly accelerated the city's development.
New houses rose one after another. Fresh farmland and orchards were reclaimed. Ranches were established. Even the efficiency of ore extraction in the mines increased significantly.
Inside the castle, Elif looked over the recent reports on the city's progress and could not help but exclaim in admiration,
"Prince Lucien is truly amazing!"
...
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