Chapter Summaries

The Imperial Second Legion returned to the capital and was formally transformed into the Emperor’s army, while Count Clayton realized Ryan’s influence was undermining the nobles’ control of their knights. Emperor Columbus IV learned what Ryan had said to the soldiers and demanded his presence, but postponed the confrontation until the Divine Grace Festival because Ryan’s child was about to be born.

• Emperor Volvo Columbus welcomed the silent, disciplined Imperial Second Legion, and the Emperor declared its service to the Light complete before granting it the name and glory of the Imperial Second Legion.
• Count Clayton explained to Aatrox that Ryan was weakening the knights’ loyalty to their noble lords, and planned to secure the army’s authority through its officers.
• At the victory banquet, nobles learned that Ryan had trained and inspected the army in Northwind Province, while Aatrox wondered whether Ryan’s actions could help the Clayton Family win over smaller nobles.
• Emperor Columbus IV received a report of Ryan’s words to the soldiers, grew angry, and ordered him to come to the capital immediately.
• After hearing that Ryan’s child was about to be born, Columbus IV agreed to wait until the Divine Grace Festival and sent congratulations and gifts.

Emperor Columbus IV used Count Clayton’s victory over the abyss demons to secure his coronation as Grand Pope of Light, while granting Clayton a grand duke nomination that the nobles ensured he could not yet claim. After accepting the setback, Clayton planned to build his family’s influence in the south through Thousand Lakes Province and the Imperial Second Legion.

• Count Clayton praised Emperor Columbus IV for the victory and pledged his loyalty, and the emperor appointed him supreme commander of the Imperial Second Legion and nominated him to become a grand duke.
• Grand Dukes Mayers, Fleming, and Rodriguez challenged Clayton’s qualifications, preventing the nobles from unanimously approving his elevation.
• Emperor Columbus IV left the nomination open for the future, and Count Clayton accepted it despite the nobles’ satisfaction at his failure.
• Ivar Clayton comforted his father, who admitted that he had expected the outcome but still felt disappointed.
• Count Clayton decided to seek five forests and two tracts of open land in Thousand Lakes Province and to strengthen ties with Marquis Floyd.
• Count Clayton planned to leave for Carlos Province the next day to take command of the Imperial Second Legion and expand his family’s influence.

The Emperor’s political victory over Grand Duke Fleming forced the transfer of Greenwood Town from Baron Flint to Viscount Nowell, triggering a bloody local war and hundreds of noble conflicts across the Empire. After rumors claimed Fleming had made Columbus IV retreat, the Emperor summoned the great nobles and challenged their claims to imperial lands and wealth.

• Grand Duke Fleming compromised with Columbus IV’s faction and surrendered benefits held by minor and mid-ranking nobles, including Greenwood Town, which the Flint Family had developed.
• Viscount Nowell arrived with an imperial envoy to take over Greenwood Town, but Baron Flint refused and ordered his soldiers to attack.
• The fighting escalated into a war of several thousand men; Baron Flint died, his successor continued the conflict, and the Emperor’s order ended the war on the eighth day.
• The Flint Family lost Greenwood Town, while Viscount Nowell was ordered to explain his concealed soldiers and send elite forces to the West Coast.
• More than three hundred noble clashes spread across the Empire, prompting the great nobles to reconvene and forcing Columbus IV to consider the damage to his authority.
• After rumors said Grand Duke Fleming had forced the Emperor to retreat, Columbus IV summoned the great nobles and questioned why they treated imperial wealth and subjects as their own.

Emperor Columbus IV ordered a survey of imperial resources across every province after blaming unclear ownership for the bloody conflict involving Baron Flint, undermining Grand Duke Fleming’s effort to delay pressure on his faction. Ferredias Fleming returned home defeated, but his father argued that the family would retain its core wealth and wondered how the emperor would act after the survey.

• Grand Duke Mayers challenged the Fleming Family’s handling of Greenwood Town, prompting Grand Duke Fleming to defend his father’s record under Columbus III.
• Columbus IV announced a comprehensive survey of imperial population, land, cities, and resources, and promised Baron Flint tax relief and an imperial administrative post.
• The emperor tasked the provincial marquises, who belonged to the royal family, with gathering resource information, threatening the privileges of powerful nobles.
• Grand Duke Fleming left the Imperial Capital as nobles began abandoning his political alliance, and Ferredias admitted to his father that his plan to stall had failed.
• Old Grand Duke Fleming reassured Ferredias that the family would keep its rightful wealth and questioned what Columbus IV would do once the Empire’s riches were documented.

Ryan used his acting-governor authority to manage the Imperial Capital’s inventory of imperial holdings in Northwind Province and defend the province’s control of the wealthy Fragrant Mountain Plains. After Baron Damian agreed to inspect Northwind City, Ryan warned Shaya that the province’s nobles’ interests and the young Marquis of Northwind’s position were bound to his leadership, leaving her isolated.

• Ryan summoned Viscount Landa and discussed how the Imperial Capital’s envoys might threaten their hold over the Fragrant Mountain Plains, then planned to use the emperor’s grant to rebuild Cold Mountain City County as a granary.
• Shaya invited Baron Damian to Thundercloud Mountain, where Ryan presented records of Northwind Province’s imperial holdings bearing the nobles’ crests.
• Shaya urged Damian to inspect the province’s reclaimed lands, and Damian agreed to visit Northwind City after Ryan invited him to examine the governor’s seat.
• Ryan told Shaya that reporting Northwind Province’s prosperity to the emperor could bring demands for overdue taxes and expose the Marquis of Northwind’s uncertain status.
• Ryan left after warning Shaya against provoking another war, and Shaya tore up Count Winter’s letter of refusal.

Emperor Columbus IV consolidated his authority by redistributing imperial resources and issuing hundreds of administrative orders, including demands that affected Northwind Province. Ryan accepted the changes to Fragrant Mountain Plains but worried about the strain on the province and his iron production as nobles gathered in Zero Crossing City to respond.

• Emperor Columbus IV sent the Temple Knights to stop nobles from plundering imperial resources, then divided control of those resources among loyal nobles and weakened Grand Duke Mayers’s share.
• The emperor ordered Farrell and the Rampaging Elephant Legion to garrison Fragrant Mountain Plains, splitting military authority from Viscount Landa; Ryan asked Farrell to meet Northwind’s nobles in Zero Crossing City and discuss imperial funding.
• Ryan focused on Avril’s impending birth, reflected on the challenges of raising a noble’s child, and struggled to choose a name.
• Count Clayton warned Ryan that Columbus IV had issued 760 administrative orders, and the emperor ordered Northwind to send laborers and iron spears for the planned Imperial Third Legion.
• Ryan recognized that the emperor was using a brief period of noble cooperation to push through long-term plans, while Farrell and Northwind’s nobles arrived in Zero Crossing City under pressure from the orders.

Ryan attended a gathering of Northwind Province's nobles, where he helped them address the Emperor's iron-ore demands and the planned relocation of Winged Gorge's army. He then returned to Rhino Horn Mountain to meet his newborn son, Iserian.

• Farrell arrived in Zero Crossing City and joined the nobles as they discussed the Emperor's order to buy Northwind Province's iron ore at a low price.
• Ryan arrived late because his wife had given birth, and he told the nobles that the Emperor's demand would consume the output of more than twenty mines.
• Ryan explained that relocating Winged Gorge's army to Fragrant Mountain Plains Fortress would strain Northwind Province's resources, and Farrell agreed to report the difficulties to the Emperor.
• Ryan invited Farrell to Iserian's birthday banquet, then returned to Rhino Horn Mountain and embraced Avril.
• Ryan named his newborn son Iserian Ryan, the eldest son of the Ryan Family.

Ryan prepared to leave Frozen Earth Territory for the Imperial Capital as the Northlands faced a historically severe blizzard, arranging winter supplies and aid for the Werewolves. He stopped in Clayton County, where Countess Ellie Fleming asked what purpose he had in mind.

• The emperor and Northwind Province reached a compromise that delayed military equipment deliveries over three years while Northwind Province supplied the army at Fragrant Mountain Plains Fortress.
• Ryan ordered Eteria to slow Church of Light construction and planned for Cleric Sven's Dawn Followers to take control of the churches once they were finished.
• A Werewolf warned Ryan that the Northlands would suffer its worst blizzard in over a century and reported that ancient Orc tribes and beasts had frozen in the disaster's path; Ryan agreed to provide food for trade.
• Ryan ordered firewood and fuel production increased, entrusted Frozen Earth Territory to Brandt and Eteria, and set out for the Imperial Capital with five hundred Stag Attendants.
• Ryan stopped in Clayton County, reunited with his mothers, and told the family he would stay for about ten days before Ellie Fleming asked what he intended to do.

Ryan sought to bring people and skilled craftsmen from the South to the Frozen Earth Territory by establishing an adventurers’ guild branch and recruiting from Clayton lands. After leaving his family, he reached Imperial Capital, where his interference in the southern conflict made him a focus of the nobles’ final political struggle before the Divine Grace Festival.

• Ryan told Milly he wanted a Northern Adventurers Guild branch in Clayton lands and argued that adventurers should be able to claim ownerless wealth in the north; Milly agreed to ask her father for support while warning Ryan to respect noble status.
• Ryan recruited Master Knox’s blacksmith apprentices for the Frozen Earth Territory, then spent days selecting other craftsmen from Blaze Dragon Castle and visited his young half-sister Vivian.
• Ryan left Count Clayton’s territory with hundreds of elite Stag Attendants and traveled toward Imperial Capital, where he was allowed to enter with ten Knight Retainers while the rest of his force camped outside.
• Ryan paid his respects to Columbus IV and then met Count Pascal and Count Stirling at Count Clayton’s estate.
• Count Stirling warned Ryan that his intervention in the southern kingdom’s military affairs and religious conflict could anger the Emperor, and Imperial Capital’s final political struggle before the Divine Grace Festival fell upon Ryan.

Ryan faced accusations in the Imperial Palace over his actions in foreign kingdoms and the Abyss war, but he defended himself and revealed the powerful nobles supporting him. The confrontation ended with Columbus IV accepting Ryan’s explanation and ordering preparations for the Divine Grace Festival.

• Chrysus Mayers presented a letter accusing Ryan of interfering in foreign affairs, exploiting the Abyss invasion, and damaging noble lands, while Columbus IV asked Ryan whether he admitted the charges.
• Ryan denied undermining the empire and explained that his private army had fought Abyss Demons and rescued survivors from corrupted lands.
• Chrysus accused Ryan of heresy over the strange forces in his army, but Ryan displayed Divine Essence: Eternity, and Columbus IV affirmed his faith in the God of Light.
• Chrysus questioned Ryan’s involvement in the Sera, Andara, and Corland kingdoms, and Ryan explained that he had been invited to command an allied army and was due to marry the Corland king’s daughter.
• Several great nobles voiced support for Ryan, and he offered Columbus IV a promised gift of gold and grain from the King of Corland.
• Columbus IV declared the misunderstanding resolved and told Ryan to prepare for the Divine Grace Festival.

Pope Solarian and the clergy of Dawn Holy Mountain prepared to judge Emperor Columbus IV for seeking the office of Grand Pope of Light, while Ryan Clayton completed his public appearances in the Imperial Capital and gained prominence among its nobles. The chapter ended with Ryan considering the emperor’s drive to centralize power and the danger posed by the empire’s grand dukes.

• Pope Solarian rallied the clergy to carry out Dawn Judgment before the Divine Grace Festival and rejected the emperor’s attempt to become Grand Pope of Light.
• Ryan Clayton declared his loyalty to Columbus IV, presented his wealth and abilities to the Council of Elders, and gained fame as the Northern Baron and Dragon Knight.
• Ryan hosted a noble banquet, where he discussed trade with nobles and offered Liv the prospect of becoming an Imperial Navy general on the West Coast.
• Ryan reflected that Columbus IV was centralizing imperial power while underestimating the strength of the four grand dukes.

Emperor Columbus IV sought to unite royal and divine authority by having himself crowned Grand Pope of Light, but the divine grace that answered the ceremony overwhelmed and killed him. The chapter ended with the Four Grand Dukes and Ryan standing amid the aftermath, while only Columbus IV’s two scepters remained.

• Ryan sensed that the emperor and the Four Grand Dukes had prepared hidden powers for the coronation procession.
• Columbus IV reached the Grand Cathedral of Light and began his coronation, as golden flames formed the Flower of Heaven and divine radiance descended.
• At Dawn Holy Mountain, Saint Solarian and the Church of Dawn’s leaders prayed for the Lord of Dawn’s response, which came from the distant empire.
• Columbus IV reached toward the golden radiance and welcomed its power, believing the God of Light had accepted him.
• The Four Grand Dukes and Ryan tried to intervene, but the divine grace overwhelmed Columbus IV and killed him, leaving his two scepters behind.

After Emperor Columbus IV was killed, the Florian Empire’s nobles blamed the Church of Dawn and swore revenge to prevent the emperor’s death from igniting internal conflict. They agreed the empire needed a new emperor to lead the war, but the chapter ended with the succession unresolved as the nobles considered the empire’s Electors.

• Ryan killed a viscount who suggested the God of Light had judged the emperor, while the Four Grand Dukes blamed the Church of Dawn for Columbus IV’s death.
• The Four Grand Dukes and the nobles swore loyalty to the empire’s dignity and vowed revenge for the martyred emperor.
• At the Council of Elders, the nobles united behind war against the Church of Dawn, partly to redirect the internal disputes over interests that Columbus IV’s death had unleashed.
• Ryan called for a new emperor to lead the empire, and nobles proposed the unborn son of Columbus IV before Grand Duke Russell warned that an infant could not command their authority.
• Grand Duke Rodriguez pointed to the Elector system, and the nobles began considering other Electors as candidates for the throne.

After Columbus IV died under the Church of Dawn’s divine judgment, the Church and the Florian Empire prepared for war while the emperor’s death destabilized the empire. Count Clayton urged Prince Freud to seek the throne, and the Council of Elders argued over whether Floyd or another claimant should become emperor.

• Solarian told the Church of Dawn’s clergy that Columbus IV had been judged by the Lord, then ordered preparations for war against the Florian Empire.
• Count Stirling explained to Ryan that no single faction in the Imperial Capital could choose the next emperor, while the Four Grand Dukes split over their interests.
• Count Clayton brought news of Columbus IV’s death to Freud in Carlos Province and urged him to pursue the throne and take revenge on the Church of Dawn.
• Church of Dawn clergy appeared at Carlos Province, and the empire’s nobles learned that Columbus IV was dead despite the Imperial Capital’s attempt to conceal it.
• At the Council of Elders, Grand Duke Rodriguez backed Floyd as emperor, while Grand Duke Mayers favored choosing among past Electors and Grand Duke Russell challenged that proposal.

Floyd and his allies maneuvered to secure the imperial succession by restoring the Kingdom of Carlos under Ekdal, while Imperial knights clashed with Church forces. Ryan won the Council of Elders’ permission to head south, where he prepared to join the coming war as a Dragon Knight.

• Count Clayton proposed restoring the Kingdom of Carlos so Floyd’s prospective title as Marquis Carlos would not obstruct his imperial claim.
• Imperial knights and Church of Dawn forces fought at Forster’s castle while both sides sought Ekdal, and the Imperial survivors escorted him to Carlos Province.
• Floyd offered Ekdal the crown of Carlos, which Ekdal accepted, and Count Teton promised to suppress nobles who opposed the restoration.
• Count Clayton ordered Aatrox to take ten thousand soldiers to the Valley of Mist to guard against the Church of Dawn.
• Ryan persuaded the Council of Elders to let him go south to help prepare the Imperial Second Legion, then mounted a dragon and headed south.

Ryan helped Ekdal Carlos restore the kingdom of Carlos, while Freud returned to the Imperial Capital and demanded an emperor be chosen. As the nobles weighed Freud’s claim, they learned the Church of Dawn had launched a massive invasion, and Grand Duke Rodriguez backed Freud’s ascension.

• Ryan arrived in Viscount Foster's territory and ordered Borgeld to secure Ekdal Carlos’s royal authority, while Grant Teton objected to his interference.
• Aatrox lent Borgeld the Clayton Family's Flame Dragon Knights, and Borgeld’s forces killed their way through the opposing nobles’ territories.
• Ekdal Carlos announced the restoration of the kingdom of Carlos, and Ryan told him the kingdom would not need to join the coming war.
• Freud entered the Imperial Capital and challenged the Council of Elders to stop arguing and choose an emperor who could lead revenge against the Church of Dawn.
• Count Stirling revealed Carlos had been restored, and the nobles realized Ryan had helped Ekdal reclaim the kingdom.
• Knights reported that the Church of Dawn had assembled an army of one million and was advancing north, prompting Grand Duke Rodriguez to kneel and urge Elector Prince Freud to become emperor.

Floyd became Emperor Columbus V and mobilized the Florian Empire for war against the Church of Dawn, while Ryan and Count Clayton struggled to prepare the Imperial Second Legion for the approaching armies. The chapter ended with the Church’s believer soldiers surrounding Aatrox’s position near Nant Royal City as Count Clayton demanded to know what Aatrox was doing.

• Floyd was crowned Emperor Columbus V and swore to avenge Columbus IV and defeat the Church of Dawn.
• The Empire mobilized its legions and allied forces, while the nobles chose not to crown Floyd Grand Pope of Light until they understood the Church’s methods.
• Sylvian Woodsinger sensed the Empire’s growing magic and sent word to the Woodlands that humanity faced a terrifying change in its fate.
• Ryan and Count Clayton discussed the Church’s possible million-strong army, the limits of their forces, and the need to fight in the Nant Kingdom.
• The Imperial Second Legion reached the outskirts of Nant Royal City, where Count Clayton learned that white-robed believer soldiers were charging into the valley where Aatrox was stationed.

The Church of Dawn ambushed the imperial army in the Valley of Mist, trapping its troops with a silent Divine Art and overwhelming them with fanatical believers and supernatural forces. Aatrox ordered a desperate breakout, and the chapter ended as five hundred potion-fueled imperial knights carved a path toward the valley entrance while the Church’s believers sacrificed themselves to stop them.

• The Church of Dawn dispersed the Valley of Mist with Divine Art and attacked the unsuspecting imperial camp, while Aatrox sounded the alarm and tried unsuccessfully to send for help.
• Michael ordered his scouts to flee and report the attack, but he and Laid stayed behind to hold off Silas and the Holy Light Knights; Silas killed them as the scouts escaped.
• Aatrox fought a Mute Ascetic while Dawn believers and summoned angels tore into the imperial lines, forcing the outnumbered army to retreat.
• Aatrox ordered an elite breakout and had the knights drink Magic Potions that burned their life force for temporary strength.
• Five hundred imperial knights charged through the Dawn army in a V-shaped formation as Aatrox protected the troops behind them and drove the Mute Ascetic back.
• The imperial army neared the valley entrance while Church of Dawn believers began sacrificing their souls and life force to block its escape.

Ryan led three thousand cavalry toward the Valley of Mist after suspecting the scouts had been intercepted, while the Church of Dawn prepared for their arrival. Aatrox struggled to lead the Imperial army out of Archbishop Dean’s encirclement, and Ryan reached the battlefield as the Church’s holy light threatened to trap them.

• Ryan warned Count Clayton that something had happened in the Valley of Mist, then rode out with three thousand cavalry to investigate.
• Archbishop Albright consulted Expatio, who predicted that the Imperial cavalry would join the battle and told him to warn Archbishop Dean.
• Aatrox’s knights sacrificed themselves to hold back Archbishop Dean’s army while the Imperial troops attempted to escape.
• Aatrox attacked the Mute Ascetic, but the Holy Light Knights and an Eternal Angel’s power kept the Imperial army under intense pressure.
• Ryan arrived a thousand meters from the battle and saw the sky trembling above the battlefield.

Ryan’s imperial forces battled the Church of Dawn at the Valley of Mist, where the Mute Ascetic transformed into a Blood Angel and unleashed devastating ancient power. After the Blood Angel’s destruction left the valley in ruins, Ryan led a cavalry charge that turned the tide against the Church’s soldiers.

• Arryris and Borgeld attacked the Church of Dawn’s forces while Aatrox confronted Archbishop Dean, who relied on a Divine Art barrier to protect himself.
• After Archbishop Dean called for the Lord’s forgiveness, the Mute Ascetic transformed into a Blood Angel and fought Arryris, Borgeld, and Aatrox.
• The Blood Angel’s power overwhelmed the three Legends until they broke free of his shackles and struck back, prompting him to unleash a catastrophic blood-red explosion.
• Ryan shielded his cavalry with his Spirit Domain, and the explosion devastated the Valley of Mist and brought down the three Legends.
• Ryan ordered his cavalry to charge, and their attack rallied the imperial soldiers against the Church of Dawn’s believer-soldiers.