Chapter 648 — Empire

Stepping into the study laid with dark blue velvet carpet, Victoria was seized by a dazed sense of time shifting and all things changed beyond recognition.

The first time she had entered this room was with her father, led by the previous Duke of the North; here she had met Francis II in the prime of his years, and also met Wilse Moen as a youth. In those days she was still a girl who retained a shred of innocence, and the nation had run on, steady and dull, as it had for centuries past, as though change would never come.

The last time she had come here was on the eve of her departure for the Giantwood Pass. Seated behind the desk then had been Wilse Moen, restored to Silverhold, the kingdom splitting apart, and a terrible crisis that no one had foreseen brewing upon the Plains of the Holy Spirit.

Now she had survived a crisis of nine deaths and one life, and stood at the turning point of this nation's fate. The master of this room had become that duke returned from the dead, and she had a vague feeling that history was gradually converging upon this very chamber, and that she—was witnessing it all firsthand.

"Sit, make yourselves at home," Gao Yang said from beside the desk, watching the two Lord Protectors enter and the attendants close the door behind them, his tone easy. "We have matters to discuss concerning the future of this nation."

"Yes... Duke," Bai Yu nodded and found himself a seat. He still addressed Gao Yang as "Duke," since Gao Yang had neither been crowned nor settled and announced any framework for the nation's future; for the time being he could only go on calling him Duke.

"One moment, there is one more participant," Gao Yang pressed his right hand down in a gesture bidding the two Lord Protectors wait, his gaze falling upon the magic-net terminal newly set upon the desk. "She is establishing a connection... the magic net here is not very stable, it is being adjusted."

Both Lord Protectors turned their eyes at once to the thaumaturgical device with its triangular metal base and crystal core, glimmering faintly. Victoria had seen a magic-net terminal before, but Duke Bai Yu had never laid eyes on the actual object, having only seen descriptions of it in reports and hand-drawn sketches. The Duke of the West stared fixedly, making no secret of his curiosity: "So this is the magical device that can make the Sending spell cheap?"

Gao Yang nodded. "You could say that, though in truth it is far more useful than the Sending spell—it requires a complex infrastructure to operate, but its upper limit of scale and its unit cost are beyond anything the Sending spell can match."

"I once considered how to extend the Sending spell's range and lower its casting requirements; it would be of great benefit both economically and militarily, but my research never made progress," Bai Yu could not help leaning closer to the device, as though he meant to work out its principle by scrutiny. "...It is an entirely different approach..."

"Buzz—"

As they spoke, the magic-net terminal suddenly emitted a humming sound, and the projection crystal at its core blazed bright in an instant. Duke Bai Yu stepped back half a pace in slight surprise, and saw a beautiful lady of serene, elegant bearing, clad in a refined gown, rise into being within the holographic projection above the crystal.

"Good afternoon, Ancestor," Heidi greeted Gao Yang first, then turned her gaze to the two dukes. "Good afternoon, Grand Duke Franklin, Archduchess Wilde."

She had never met Duke Bai Yu, but she had seen the records of nearly every high-ranking noble in the kingdom; much of the basic knowledge concerning the Kingdom of Ansu was course material at the Cecil Academy, and the people of the South were no strangers to the kingdom's top nobility.

"Good afternoon," Bai Yu returned the greeting, and after a moment's hesitation matched her to the intelligence in his mind. "Lady Heidi Cecil, you are as beautiful as the rumors say."

"Thank you for the compliment."

"We have already entered Silverhold," Gao Yang said from beside her. "You should have received the detailed intelligence on your end."

"Yes, the Bureau of Affairs and the front are in clear communication," Heidi nodded, a smile of undisguised relief upon her face. "I am glad to hear your campaign goes well—the additional supplies and civil officials bound for the North have already boarded ship at Pompeii, on fast mechanical vessels."

Gao Yang let out a light breath: to have a reliable, capable great-great-granddaughter like Heidi was truly a comfort. He scarcely needed to worry about logistics or order in the homeland. Apart from being unable to marry, casting spells that skirted the edge, and faking dark circles to wangle sick leave, Heidi had, in his view, no flaws at all...

He sat down behind the desk; the two Lord Protectors took the two high-backed chairs beside it, and with Heidi's holographic projection, a remote conference—most uncommon in this age—thus began.

"The history of Ansu is over. The appraisal of this kingdom, the merits and faults of its kings, its ending—these are for the historians to discuss. What we must consider now is how to guarantee the stability of social order, guarantee the people's survival after this disaster, and end this nation's state of disorder as quickly as possible," Gao Yang looked to Bai Yu and Franklin. "The enfeoffment system is backward, but at a time like this it shows at least one advantage—the fiefs each run themselves, in some sense like countless self-sufficient, self-sustaining petty kingdoms. The end of Ansu's royal power will not immediately cause order in these lands to collapse, and so we have some time to work with."

"Yes, Victoria and I have discussed this," Bai Yu nodded. "The two of us still carry some influence among the old nobility. We will do all in our power to cooperate with you in this process, to minimize resistance in the various regions and ensure the stability of the nation's restructuring."

Heidi nodded as well. "The South is ready. The working group composed of the Consul and officials at every level of the Bureau of Affairs, together with the security forces, are standing by at Bedrock Fortress, ready to move north at any time to restore order."

"Restoring order in the North will, to some degree, require the cooperation of local powers. The Military Intelligence Bureau has rich experience in this; I will have Amber assist from the sidelines," Gao Yang said. "The two Lord Protectors will also lend their aid in this process."

Pausing, he added: "At present the South has limited manpower, and the administrative system's capacity to absorb and control is likewise limited; we cannot swallow all of Ansu in one gulp—priority goes to reorganizing and rebuilding the Plains of the Holy Spirit region, first restoring the productive capacity of the nation's heartland. The West and the North... I leave to Bai Yu and Victoria. I will dispatch administrative officials to assist you. Any problem with that?"

The two Lord Protectors thought briefly, then responded: "No problem."

"In this process, all the old nobility must sign to obey the new law, including you two. At the same time, military authority in both regions will be transferred to the Military Department of the Supreme Bureau of Affairs; the original Mountain Legion and Western Legion must accept reorganization, and both regions must accept garrisons of the Supreme Bureau of Affairs," Gao Yang said, point by point. "Economy, military, politics... all must be unified. The enfeoffment system will be ended, replaced by Cecil law and order. Obstacles will inevitably arise; there may even be regional and periodic reversals, but I want everyone to be clear on at least one thing: a new era has come, and its advance is inevitable. Obstacles may appear, but in the end they must be removed."