Empress Natsume ✓

XXVIII

With that statement, my eyes automatically opened. By the love of God! We're in a grave danger. This is definitely not good, how the hell will our 50,000 soldiers be able to defend our Northern border?!

"Did the 100,000 troops reinforcement that are ordered by Raiden to march there have arrived yet?"

Just the herald's expression answered his question. His eyes are reflecting terror.

"Milord, I'am afraid---that-that it may take a while before they arrived"

Isoroku, whom I thought would be jumping in joy seems to have a cold sweat and is shaking because of anger and fear. It was written all over his face, anger for Raiden who abandoned them just to hunt for a few heads of the cultists rather than rushing to the Northern border's aid, and fear for the Kang's soldiers that are surely to invade Lord Ryuu's states with his absence. Isoroku's wife look even worse, she's as pale as the dead corpse, her knees weakened and she kneeled on the ground with her hands on her mouth.

For Isoroku, it can't be helped. He may hates Lord Ryuu because of the atrocious things he did in the past but a fact remains a fact that if Lord Raiden Ryuu falls, he will no doubt bring down the whole Ryuu clan with him. He's just happy that Lord Ryuu found his match in the battlefield to lessen his loftiness but he doesn't really want him to lose. Because for the powerful noble clan, to lose the head of the family is losing everything of their wealth and power, no matter how much he hates their leader. Isoroku must get powerful figures by his side inside the family clan if he wished to become the head, seeking outside of the clan means that you're annihilating your clan yourself from the very roots of its history. The problem is that all powerful figures of the family are only loyal to Raiden, such as Izumi who's the next head of Ryuu clan if Raiden died without an heir. Obviously, Izumi is too loyal to Raiden, he'll do everything he commands.

That's what makes Isoroku's hatred and anger grew even more. I'm sure that his thoughts were 'How could they still be loyal to him after his outraged of ambushing the main family no less. Its his own flesh and blood!! How could he do that?!!'

Despite of this. Lord Ryuu proved to be the best of the best in their whole family, especially in warfare. At a young age of 22, he owns half of the Sang's states. He's the first person in Sang's history to conquer half of the country at his young age.

But what he's doing now is not his usual self. As much as I knew Lord Ryuu for a short while, he will make haste and quickly abandon everything just to aid his men in the battlefield, just like how he left me after our first wedding night. I bet that the sun was not even up when he left his castle.

"They'll reach us in just two days or maybe in just a day! We need to get out of here. Pack all our clothes and valuable things, tell that to the other servants too"

Isoroku's wife ordered to the servants but her husband quickly dismissed her orders.

"No... We can't move out of here, our clan will label us as cowards, we can't migrate from another states either. The other states ban the citizens from Raiden's States to migrate to their territories, they will surely kill us, especially if we're directly related to Raiden. Have you forgotten what he did after he subjugated the enemy states? His rules were all the same. Killing all of the enemy soldiers even if they have already surrendered and opened their gates to them. Sold the civilians to a slavery and Ryuu's soldiers even kept the beautiful women for their own carnal desire to which he just ignored"

This Kind of news is old but looking back and the way I see Lord Ryuu now is quite different. Besides, what he's saying is not all true. Our small village in the South had surrendered to him without shedding a single drop of blood. He agreed to our condition of marrying me even if he has a great chance to refuse it. How could a small powerless village that has surrendered to him demand a condition to a powerful warlord like him?