Ross Kingdom, Rossfar City.
Though this royal capital on the very edge of human territory was not particularly vast, its prosperity could rival even the imperial capital of the Radiant Sun Empire on its best days.
The reason was simple: humanity was far from the sole ruler of this continent.
No matter how chaotic internal politics became, the ironclad consensus among all human nations was that border defense against magical beasts and non-human races must never waver.
Take the Ross Kingdom as an example.
It sat at the southwesternmost tip of human lands, sharing a direct border with the “Endless Mountain Range,” the breeding ground of countless ferocious magical beasts. As the primary choke point for beast invasions, its strategic importance was self-evident.
In fact, across the continent, border nations like Ross—adjacent to beast lairs or non-human territories—were everywhere.
According to the ancient pact made ten thousand years ago when the founding emperor established the Radiant Sun Empire and enfeoffed the various kingdoms, any kingdom directly facing external threats had the right to demand unconditional military and material aid from inland nations.
Thanks to this, despite its modest territory, the Ross Kingdom’s military strength was absolutely formidable.
As a side note, the nation with the longest border exposure was none other than the Radiant Sun Empire itself—its northern frontier completely overlapped with the frozen tundra in the far north, home to massive numbers of magical beasts and non-human tribes.
Historically, the empire had shouldered at least a third—if not more—of the entire human race’s border defense burden, generation after generation.
Even excluding the four great empires, among current human nations the Ross Kingdom’s military power indisputably ranked in the top tier.
It boasted a full two thousand active-duty Magitech Knights and over a hundred thousand support troops.
Magitech Knights—the backbone of modern human warfare—were not only astronomically expensive to build and maintain; the magical aptitude required of their pilots was equally stringent.
Every single Magitech Knight had to hold at least a Tier-3 Mage certification from the Magician Association headquartered in the imperial capital, and was almost always a noble of at least “Knight” rank or higher, accompanied by dozens of retainers dedicated solely to the maintenance and logistics of their machine.
It was no exaggeration to say that the number of Magitech Knights a nation possessed was the ultimate measure of its military might.
Aside from its relatively remote location and the fact that it was “merely” a kingdom rather than one of the four empires, the real reason Ye Xu had chosen this place as his first stop after fleeing the empire was precisely this overwhelming military power.
Of course, the most important reason of all was…
[Mother, detecting Magitech Knight mana signatures.]
[Count: 2]
Night God’s voice rang in his mind, snapping Ye Xu out of his appreciation of the street scenery.
He turned toward the direction indicated and saw a convoy slowly emerging from the main city gate.
At the front was an opulent carriage pulled by two magnificent pure-white steeds whose physiques and faint magical aura clearly betrayed magical-beast bloodlines.
Flanking the carriage on both sides were two four-meter-tall military-standard Magitech Knights.
Their distinctive dark-grey paint marked them as belonging to the Ross Kingdom, while the crest on their shoulder pauldrons revealed their lord’s identity—
The Earl House of the Ross Kingdom: House Nal.
Seeing that the person he had been waiting for had finally arrived, Ye Xu stood and walked toward the convoy.
The convoy came to a halt in front of the station.
A neatly dressed, composed middle-aged butler hopped down from the coachman’s seat and approached Ye Xu.
“Young master, the lord has been awaiting you for some time. This way, please.”
He performed a flawless butler’s bow and stepped aside to usher Ye Xu in.
Ye Xu returned a slight nod and boarded the carriage.
The moment he entered, an extremely familiar figure came into view.
The current head of House Nal, the newly ennobled earl of the Ross Kingdom—
Simar · Nal.
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“Holy shit! HAHAHAHAHA!!!”
Moments later, inside the Nal family mansion’s study, earth-shaking laughter erupted.
“I damn well thought it was just a rumor!”
“So you really got turned into a girl?!”
Simar · Nal—thirty-five years old, outwardly stern and profound, the man who in a mere five years had single-handedly raised a declining baronial house into a capital-earldom—was currently doubled over, clutching his stomach and laughing like a maniac in front of a boy less than half his age.
Across from him, Ye Xu sat gracefully on the sofa sipping tea, face arranged in the most insincere smile imaginable.
An awkward silence spread through the room.
“…”
Cough cough.
Realizing the atmosphere had turned dangerous—and not wishing to be “silenced” on the spot by the person who could rip Magitech Knights apart with bare hands—Simar hurriedly straightened up, cleared his throat, and put on a serious expression.
“Alright, let’s talk properly.”
“Give me the current situation—yours, the Eternal Night Knights’, and the rebel army’s.”
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Simar and Ye Xu could be considered half mentor, half friend despite the age gap.
Seven years ago, a twenty-eight-year-old Simar—brimming with ambition yet shackled by the rigid aristocratic class system—had by chance encountered a ten-year-old Ye Xu and Navila, who had already mastered Magitech Knight construction techniques and were traveling in search of funding and materials.
After just a few words, both sides instantly recognized the other’s extraordinary potential.
Thus, Simar—who had money but no technology—and Ye Xu—who had technology but no money—hit it off immediately.
Simar wanted to raise his family’s status and desperately needed cutting-edge Magitech Knights, but the technology was monopolized by royal families and top nobles everywhere.
Ye Xu could build them, yet as a commoner he was flat broke.
The final agreement: Simar provided the capital, Ye Xu handled research and development, profits split fifty-fifty.
That was the original source of funding for the very first batch of Magitech Knights Ye Xu ever built.
Afterward, although the growing scale of the rebellion meant the two never met in person again, they stayed in contact through letters and magical communication.
In a way, Simar was the escape route Ye Xu had prepared for himself.
As a transmigrator, he understood better than anyone that “a starving camel is still bigger than a horse.” He had never intended to fight the empire to the death.
His and the rebel army’s ultimate goal had always been independence and the founding of a new nation.
Ye Xu’s personal endgame was to establish a constitutional monarchy governed by a council of sages, serve as the founding king, then—once everything stabilized—retire honorably, hand over power to the worthy, and step back.
At that point, he would take the Eternal Night Knights into the shadows and oversee the nation from behind the scenes.
The Ross Kingdom was the retirement destination he had chosen for himself, and Simar was the one tasked with arranging everything for that eventual retirement.
Before everything went wrong, he had truly been only one step away from success.
The border nobles of the empire had been terrified into ceding vast fertile territories.
Even within the imperial high command, rumors constantly circulated that the royal family was willing to recognize his independence.
In hindsight, it had all been a stalling tactic—a smokescreen laid by the emperor to activate the bloodline magic and capture him alive.
And the final result…
Was exactly what stood before Simar right now.
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