The Emperor and the Knightess

Chapter 12

When the knightess’s face fell, Lucius the First thought back on what he just said. After a few seconds, he figured it out. It wasn’t a big deal, it was merely a difference in their cultures and the emperor knew that this kind of misunderstanding would occur as he conquers more nations in the future.

“Acreia is the land of hunters. Most men hunt or fight as soldiers, and oftentimes, there are multiple members of the same family serving in the same base. To avoid confusion, which will occur if we call people by their family name, we call knights by their first names in Acreia,” Lucius explained to Poliana.

Poliana felt relieved. Still smiling, Lucius the First pointed at the other knights and introduced them to her.

“I planned on making the introductions after you got better, but I guess this would be a good time too. Say hello to each other. You will all be seeing each other often from now on.”

Poliana didn’t know which position or division she was going to be assigned, but it was very likely that one of these men was going to become her future superior.

“I am Poliana Winter from Aehas,” she introduced herself properly.

It was meaningless to bring up her homeland in front of the men who planned on taking over the world. In the future, Poliana hoped that she, and everyone else in the room, would forget all about the small nations they’re from and unite under something that was much bigger.

Lucius the First grinned as he seemed to like her introduction. He informed her of the name of all the men in the tent in the order of their seniority and after it was done, Poliana’s eyes sparkled.

Aehas and Acreia had different military structures. In Aehas, 25 foot soldiers made up a platoon, which was led by a platoon leader. Four platoon leaders were led by a company commander, and five commanders were led by a captain.

In Acreia, however, it was very different. A basic group would be composed of only ten soldiers. The one that who would lead those ten would be called a 10-leader and the knight tasked to lead ten 10-leaders would be called a 100-leader. A company commander would be leading 50 footsoldiers and only some units had this position.

The structure was so different that their positions sounded and felt unfamiliar to her. But one thing was certain, the man who had the lowest rank in this tent, a 100-leader, was actually considered as a fairly high-ranking officer.

This meeting consisted of very important people, so what was the meaning of inviting her here and introducing her to these men?

Poliana didn’t have many political ambitions and she knew her position very well.

A woman.

But she also knew her own talent and she knew exactly what she was good at. She was no fighter and her usefulness was inside a tent.

Strategies and tactics.

‘Should I do it?’

Poliana contemplated. Their introductions were over which meant that everyone was now expecting her to leave so they could start their meeting but she hesitated. She felt like she couldn’t leave the tent.

A good subject would know what the emperor would need even before he could realize it himself.

Poliana glanced at the emperor who was smiling kindly. Could she dare to guess what the emperor wanted or needed?

Lucius the First brought Poliana to the commander’s tent and he introduced her to his highest ranking men.

After hesitating for a moment, she decided on her course of action. It didn’t matter if they called her rude and it would be ok if they kicked her out for her insolence.

She didn’t care whatever name they wished to call her.

Poliana quickly studied the maps in front of her. They were of Aehas drawn by Acreians. It was most likely drawn based on the information brought to them by their spies.

It was a decent depiction, but it was not 100% accurate. Whatever data they gathered from their spies couldn’t compare to the information of an actual Aehas citizen.

Poliana’s eyes sharpened and she started to speak confidently. “I would like to offer a suggestion.”

“What is it?”

Lucius the First didn’t admonish her. In fact, his smile became even wider like he was enjoying this situation.

Whether it was genuine or not, this emperor certainly liked to smile a lot and Poliana liked it.

“Before I begin, is there a map of Kukda here?”

This meeting was to discuss their plan of conquering Aehas, so when Poliana brought up the subject of Kukda, the men’s faces fell. The only two people who looked calm in the tent were Poliana and Lucius the First.

The knights had no choice but to bring out the map since the emperor seemed very interested. Poliana took a deep breath and as she looked at the map, she continued, “I suggest that your highness conquer Aehas and Kukda at the same time.”

The idea wasn’t a bluff. Poliana was sure of her plan. Aehas and Kukda have been fighting each other for so long that they were severely weakened. And as every Aehas knight has done, Poliana also has put a lot of thoughts into defeating Kukda. Her plan was well thought out and was based on her extensive research and experience.

Poliana offered the men her best plan of attack. Finishing off Aehas was going to be a piece of cake, and conquering Kukda seemed to be just a bonus prize.

She knew the weaknesses, military structures, the main army figures of Kukda, and she knew how to get it done in the most efficient way.

After laying out her plan, Poliana blushed in excitement and pride.

It was a perfect war strategy.

Of course, the problem was if these men were willing to accept it. If they didn’t, then all her planning was going to be useless.

And as she expected, the men protested, “Your highness! This could be a trap!”

“Your highness, you can’t trust this girl! Even if she isn’t planning to sabotage us, she is still only a mere woman and therefore, her plan must be flawed.”

“A woman’s strategy! Why are we listening to her?”

“See how she is betraying her country? How could we trust a traitor?”

“She is suggesting that we divide our military force into two and attack two different countries! She is trying to kill us all!”

“That is not true! The two countries are much weaker than they appear. The morale of these soldiers are so low that if cornered, none of Aehas’ and Kukda’s men will fight back. If you promise to be fair and not to plunder the cities, they will not stand in your way and once you enter the capital, it will be all over. All of their best knights and soldiers are at the border. The capitals of both countries are weak and defenseless.” Poliana tried to defend her plan.

More protests came from the men and it seemed that the emperor would have no choice but to listen to his knights. After all, Poliana was a newly appointed knight and a woman. It made sense that the emperor would respect and listen to his long-time trusted men, even if he liked Poliana’s plan.

Lucius the First touched his chin slowly and asked, “Knightess, do you truly feel confident about your plan?”

Poliana swallowed hard and replied, “Please, your highness. You must trust me. It will be a piece of cake.”

“Then I will take your word for it.”

“Your highness!”

Lucius the First smiled sweetly, and all her worries melted away. The emperor didn’t waste any time. He took his soldiers and left immediately. Poliana was too injured to follow him into the battles, so instead, she stayed behind to study the Acreian military laws and cultures.

She also started planning for future battles with other nations. She was sure of the fall of Aehas and Kukda. She knew it was going to be easy, but even an easy war would take time. She expected this conquest to continue around spring. This meant that Acreia should stock up and rest for the rest of the seasons and start its conquest again in winter.

Only

The next nation to invade was Bebero. It was located at the south Aehas and Kukda. Aehas and Kukda were separated from Bebero by a river named Koemong, which was the widest and deepest river on the northern continent.

To get to Bebero, they needed to cross this river. Poliana had never done a battle in water, which meant that she needed to study a different tactic on that matter.

Having a goal and making an effort for it was a beautiful thing. It made Poliana very happy. It gave her a purpose to wake up every morning.

That winter, before the spring arrived, Lucius the First was able to make those two kingdoms surrender. The emperor of Aehas kneeled in front of Lucius the First to relinquish his country, while the emperor of Kukda kneeled in front of Sir Bentier, the head of the Acreian army that was sent to invade Kukda.

Lucius the first smiled in satisfaction. As his knightess promised, things happened quickly and efficiently. Her plan allowed him to conquer the two nations a few months faster than he had anticipated compared to their original plan.

“I’m going to have to reward Sir Poliana.”

Lucius the First was 22 years old and it seemed that he was able to dominate two countries before he turned 23. He couldn’t stop smiling.