Badge in Azure

Chapter 110: Expedition (Part 1)
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

“It is quite a coincidence that the convoy from the Cloudflow Empire is here early.” Lex thought about the nobleman, a feeling of uneasiness surfacing within her again. Had they used the teleportation portal to the capital to make it in time and press charges on Mokolari’s son?

“My daughter, this problem can be solved easily. I have decided to personally lead an expedition to Loulan.” The Qin Emperor’s words were shocking. Saleen had not even realized that anything was amiss by the time the grand swordmaster’s expression had changed.

The crown prince and the lower house had put pressure on the emperor, causing him to possess a never before seen determination. A personal expedition! If the emperor were to lead an expedition, wherever he went, there would be voluntary troops around to assist him in battle. The number of troops would be at least half the number of troops stationed there. If they did not assist him, it would be considered treason.

With the emperor away on an expedition, Safilos would need to stay in the capital. Lex would only need to follow her father and return safely to Bitter Water Prefecture.

However, an expedition by the emperor involved a huge risk. In the capital, the emperor had the protection of three Grade 9 sorcerers. These sorcerers would not follow the army. They would stay in the magic towers at the palace, protecting the generations of people in Holy Rock City rather than just the emperor alone.

The Qin Empire had long passed its stages of establishment. Not many sorcerers would want to follow along on an expedition. Many low-grade mages would want to go, but anyone wanting to assassinate the emperor would definitely be an elite of at least Grade 7 or above.

“Emperor, you cannot do this!” A strict voice resounded from outside the study. It had a tinge of anger to it.

“Safilos, you are here.” The Qin Emperor said this monotonously. The door to the study opened and the crown prince stood outside, a look of anger on his face.

Only the crown prince himself would have the guts to burst into the study of the emperor.

Safilos took large steps into the study and said loudly, “Your Majesty, the emperor is the symbol of the entire country. It is unheard of for an emperor to personally lead an expedition while the empire is in chaos.”

The emperor gave a cold laugh and said, “Is forcing the emperor to marry away his daughter a tradition of the Qin Empire?”

“Your Majesty has a crown prince already!” Safilos defended himself. He looked similar to the emperor, and in his fit of anger, he possessed a similar authority as him too.

“If my son had not died in the accident, would you have wanted to replace him too?” The emperor’s voice was growing colder by the minute. Saleen backed away silently. He had realized that the surroundings of the emperor and the crown prince had begun to form an impenetrable screen. The two most powerful men in the empire had drawn their swords and were ready to attack.

Safilos’ hair was nearly standing on end at this point. He was so angry that he was at a loss for words at what the emperor had said. He took a while before saying, “Chanake, my two sons do not strive for anything. What have I strived for?”

“My daughter Lex was good, but she was chased out by you for over a decade. She has been governing Bitter Water Prefecture perfectly.” Seeing his younger brother in a rage, the emperor decided to speak calmly. “I have endured enough. This time, my mind is made up. I shall personally bring the troops out on an expedition. If you think that what I am doing is wrong, you may take over my position in the capital. The three masters in the palace will not make life hard for you. How about that?”

Safilos had many things he wanted to say, but he was defenseless against the emperor’s words. He looked harshly at Lex and said, “Very good, Lex. The entire capital has been in chaos since your return. If you are thinking about establishing a county, you can forget about it. I will never agree to that.”

Lex began to grow agitated. Raising her hand and showing him the god’s ring on her finger, she said to Safilos, “Uncle, do you recognize this?”

Safilos stood rooted to the ground. God’s ring. Brother actually gave the ring to Lex!

Safilos pointed at the emperor and the viscountess. His voice was shaking as he said, “You… both of you…”

“Safilos, I have two proposals here which I have already prepared.” The emperor took out two documents and said, “You can either let Lex set up her own duchy, or let her become the crown princess, which you can go back and tell the lower house.”

“You can go tell them yourself!” Safilos exploded in a fit of rage and turned to leave. A golden light shimmered from him and with a loud bang, the door of the study was turned into fine powder from the impact of his sword aura.

Saleen’s heart was beating rapidly. Safilos’s sword aura was terrifying. Even though he had suppressed it, it had still destroyed the door of the study that had been filled with magic arrays. He had always looked down on swordsmen, and Lex had managed to kill a silver grand swordmaster using tricks and tactics. Who would have thought that even though a gold and silver grand swordmaster were only a single grade away, they were basically two different people.

At the same time, Saleen’s impression of the emperor had subconsciously become even better. The emperor treated Lex the same way as Jason had treated him.

“Father.” Lex saw her uncle destroy the door and did not know what to say.

“Lex, going on the expedition is something that I need to do. In addition to bringing one hundred thousand elites, I can bring with me two battalions of palace swordsmen. I will send you back to Hadisai City. We will walk a thousand more miles and I can hire more soldiers then. Safilos knows the importance of this. If I leave, he will support your brother.”

“Sigh…” Viscountess Lex could only sigh, knowing she could not change her father’s mind. She was only able to ask, “How many palace mages can you bring with you?”

“One Grade 8 and two Grade 7 mages.”

“So little!”

“Stephanie has gone to Alchemy City.”

Alchemy City! This magic city was a place that was both loved and hated by the Qin royals. A great number of mages had been attracted to Alchemy City and had not returned to the palace, but those mages had become the future of the city.

With that said, Alchemy City guarded the most important port in the empire, and even the navy of the Cloudflow Empire could not do anything about it. Without Alchemy City, the empire’s coastal regions would have been completely exposed to the invincible navy of the Cloudflow Empire, and they would have needed to spend a large amount of money in building magic cannons to protect these areas like the Tanggulasi Empire had done.

Moreover, even though the mages in Alchemy City were not required to obey the empire’s instructions, during the tumultuous times in Phoenix Duchy, they had sent hundreds of mages over to the border to stop the black mages from entering the Qin Empire.

“Father, have Faerun go with you.” Lex could not stop the emperor and needed to think of other strategies. At least with more sorcerers by her father’s side, she would feel safer.

The Qin Emperor laughed and said, “Lex, I may not be the strongest person in the mainland, but even a Grade 9 sorcerer cannot do much to me. Faerun has always followed you. That puts me at ease.”

Lex nodded silently. With her father going on an expedition, in addition to requisitioning the soldiers from the wealthy around that area, he would have full control over Loulan Duchy. This was a great advantage he held over Safilos. Although on paper this would be considered an expedition, in reality, her father was going to regroup the powers of the wealthy through this trip.

Her uncle would not hold him back. This time, everybody wanted to preserve the glory of the Grukos royals.

Uncle wanted stability. However, father is using this opportunity to rejuvenate the empire again.

The news of the empire going on an expedition spread quickly, and the capital was thrown into chaos again. The upper and lower houses stopped arguing about Lex establishing a county, and the troops were the ones who had the most positive reaction. If the emperor was going on an expedition, the powers of the army would naturally increase, and they would no longer be protecting just the capital. At the same time, so long as Loulan Duchy secured a victory, the army would become even more wealthy. If they were able to expand the land, it would be easy for them to get some feudal estates as a reward.

The wealthy families in the upper house of the empire were but the descendants of the people who had helped build the empire at its start.

The goal of the Qin Empire was to build a unified Fifth Dynasty. What else could have possibly been more exciting?

The turmoil in Loulan Duchy was just the beginning. Once there was a direct conflict with the Tanggulasi Empire, many opportunities to make contributions and sacrifices would spring up. The wealthy and glorious plains had been conquered by the sacred Holy See for far too long. Who wouldn’t have gotten jealous?

That afternoon, the Qin Empire gathered all of the cabinet ministers of the house at the palace. Saleen could not go this time, as he was not qualified. He called Sika to his room, not knowing what to say yet.

“Saleen, what do you want to say?” Sika had just been practicing her martial arts when Saleen had interrupted her. Hence, she was slightly annoyed.

“This… Sika, I have talked to the viscountess. She will send some money and rations to your village.”

“Really?” Upon hearing that, Sika was overjoyed. She had been worrying for the past few months. While she had been enjoying herself, she had not been sure what was happening back in her village. She had many reasons for not going back, but none of them would change the fact that the biggest reason she had not left was because she did not want to leave Saleen.

“Really. The emperor wants to personally make a trip down to Loulan, and the viscountess will be returning to Bitter Water Prefecture. She’ll then be able to send someone to enter Cascausus from Loulan, since by that time, there will definitely be an army there to eliminate the Holy See’s forces.”

“Master, why don’t we go there?” Nailisi asked Saleen. Upon hearing about a battle, she licked her lips.

“I need to follow the viscountess for at least three years.” Saleen sighed. He had never planned to leave anyway, but it was just that he would not enjoy much freedom in the future. The more he was involved in the viscountess’ life, the harder it would be for him to let go. If Lex truly made him responsible for establishing contact with the Clyde family, he could not just leave as he pleased after three years.

Whatever. I will be training there anyway. If I am tied to Bitter Water Prefecture, I will still have a Grade 8 mage’s protection. Before finding my teacher, he will be my only backing.

If he had not had anyone backing him back then, he would not have dared gotten into a fight with the nobleman on the streets. That man must have also wanted to get his way with force.

Saleen faced a small problem while Lex had a big issue on hand. The emperor deciding to go about his own way had led to the cabinet ministers venting their anger out on her. When Lex returned, she released a Ground Fire spell and burned everything in the room.

At first, she had held little opinion towards forming a country, but the attitudes of the wealth had made her more determined. After releasing her anger, she called everyone to her side and reminded them not to leave the palace for the next few days. Once they returned to Bitter Water Prefecture, they could restock their equipment and enter Loulan from the small roads.

In addition to Saleen, the combat mages and swordsmen were excited. Building a county would increase their status to greater heights. The Qin Empire was made up of mages and swordsmen. The strength of Lex’s army was similar to that of the Qin Empire when it was first established. One day, these people would become dukes or duchesses, or even build cities like Alchemy City.

After increasing the spirits of her troops, Lex began to grow bored. She had destroyed her room and had been given Nailisi’s room instead. She had Faerun gather the lifestyle mages together to discuss how they would deal with Hadisai City.