Chapter Summaries

After Boolgan’s rebellion collapsed, Schroeder’s forces restored control of Lakeheart Town and Paul returned safely. Paul responded by ordering sweeping expansions of the judiciary, police, and local administration, leaving his reforms poised to reshape the territory.

• The Internal Guard Unit learned of Boolgan’s rebellion, rallied to the Lord’s Manor, and helped loyalists regain control of Lakeheart Town while Boolgan’s remaining accomplices were arrested.
• Schroeder and Claude entered Lakeheart Town, where Schroeder reunited with Ron and Kelly and reported that Earl Greiman had survived the attack.
• Schroeder and the other officials agreed to bring Paul and Earl Garnard to Lakeheart Town and keep the town under martial law; Schroeder also sent orders to Walton’s 6th Infantry Battalion after learning it had repelled Earl Bazel’s forces near Emden.
• Paul and Mellon returned to Lakeheart Town two days later, and Paul gathered his subjects at the Lord’s Manor.
• Paul announced that reforms would begin immediately, ordering Thomas to expand the Lord’s Tribunal and Russ Hayden to extend the police force into towns and villages.
• Paul told Wakely that village administration needed strengthening and that the existing practice of assigning one Affairs Officer to each village was unworkable.

Paul announced plans to replace the Agricultural Cooperatives with Village Management Committees and use them to extend Lakeheart Town’s administration into rural life. He vowed to strip village landlords of their privileges and protect farmers through limits on rents and interest, debt reviews, and a new Agricultural Bank.

• Paul explained that Village Management Committees would handle village affairs and report to Lakeheart Town, prompting Old Ford to warn that the reform would raise administrative costs.
• Paul argued that village families such as the Valen Family and Fergus had used land, taxation, debt, and local authority to keep farmers dependent on them.
• Paul declared that he would abolish tax farming, reclaim judicial authority, and remove every privilege held by rural landlords.
• Paul proposed capping rents and interest, reviewing existing debts, and allowing descendants to renounce inherited debt.
• Paul announced that an Agricultural Bank would provide farmers with very low-interest loans, especially when disasters or poor harvests left them in need.

Paul rejected a proposal to test his legal and debt reforms in a few villages, insisting on a sudden, territory-wide implementation. He approved the proposed punishment for the rebels in principle but ordered officials to interrogate them first, and agreed to temporarily restrict recruitment and exam registration in Babor Village and nearby villages.

• Hansel Abbott urged Paul to trial the reforms in one or two villages to protect agricultural production, but Paul rejected the suggestion and warned that trials would give opponents time to sabotage them.
• Cecil backed Paul's reforms, arguing that putting money in peasants' hands would expand demand for manufactured goods and increase tax revenue.
• Thomas presented a proposed disposition for the rebellion's participants, and Paul called for interrogations to uncover accomplices, outside contacts, and who had concealed knowledge of the conspiracy.
• Russ Hayden estimated that investigating the rebellion's many participants could take a year and a half to two years, and Paul approved the time needed to pursue it.
• Ford proposed suspending recruitment and Government Affairs Council Affairs Officer exam registration in Babor Village and nearby villages, and Paul agreed.

After returning to his office, Paul met with Hansel, who raised the ministers’ concerns about Paul’s hesitation to punish the rebels’ entire families. Hansel warned that spared descendants could seek revenge, but Paul remained unwilling to condemn innocent relatives and accepted that precautions could not guarantee his safety.

• Paul returned to his office and asked Butler Philip to leave him alone.
• Philip told Paul that Hansel had returned and wanted to speak with him, so Paul admitted Hansel.
• Hansel said he had come to express concerns shared by the ministers about Paul’s reaction to Judge Thomas’s proposal to execute the families of all rebellion participants.
• Paul said he wanted to punish the traitors but thought killing their uninvolved relatives was excessive.
• Hansel warned that the traitors’ descendants could grow powerful and take revenge, while Paul argued that strict precautions would make this unlikely and accepted the possibility that fate might still bring danger.

Hansel urged Paul to eliminate the families of his enemies to protect his loyal subjects, but Paul said he was prepared to keep history moving forward and postponed his final decision. Rumors about the upheaval in Lakeheart Town spread, drawing the attention of Emden’s vassal lords and the Customs Union’s remaining lords.

• Hansel warned Paul that sparing the relatives of criminals could endanger Paul’s subjects and their families.
• Paul wrestled with Hansel’s argument but said someone had to take the first step toward a better future.
• Paul told Hansel he would consider the matter before the final judgment and ended their conversation.
• News of the upheaval in Lakeheart Town spread, growing into rumors that the Earl Greiman in power was a double.
• Emden’s vassal lords and the remaining Customs Union lords sent envoys or traveled to Lakeheart Town to confirm Paul’s identity.

Grand Duke Cabrale recovered from his battle wound as he learned that the Church’s defeated army had been broken and that Palada sought Eton’s protection. He reaffirmed his family’s promise to the mysterious reinforcements who had saved Eton.

• Doctor Ramirez changed Grand Duke Cabrale’s bandages and estimated that his injured arm would fully recover in ten days.
• Grand Duchess Helen told Cabrale that the Church’s retreating forces had suffered further losses and could no longer fight their way back.
• Helen reported that Palada had requested Eton’s protection, and Cabrale agreed to halt his army there rather than advance farther.
• Helen asked whether Cabrale’s previous promise still stood, and he affirmed that the Cabrey family would keep its word to those who had saved Eton.

The Horn Bay Alliance’s leaders debated how to respond to Eton’s victory and its decision to recognize wizards, then ordered an attack despite losing allied troops and facing fortified enemy positions. At the front, General Sharuba Basques agreed to obey the order but criticized the Council’s delays.

• Marcus showed Councilor Foster a secret letter reporting that Eton would recognize the legal status of wizards, and they discussed the consequences for the alliance.
• Marcus decided the Horn Bay Alliance would not respond to Eton’s decision yet and ordered reserves committed to capture several enemy fortresses.
• At Sigitas, General Sharuba Basques inspected the Guardian Army’s heavily fortified position with Councilor Horace and Quiller Foster.
• Councilor Horace informed General Basques that the Council had unanimously ordered the army to win one or two battles.
• General Basques agreed to carry out the order and urged Councilor Horace to convey his criticism of the Council’s indecision.

Queller Foster joined the allied assault on the Guardian Army fortress after the forces breached the trenches and advanced siege vehicles to the walls. He led his men onto the battlements, where they fought the defenders in a chaotic melee.

• General Shaluba Basques ordered the allied forces to attack the fortress and used trench-filling chariots and prisoners carrying sand to cross its three trenches.
• Basques encouraged Queller Foster, then sent him and his unit toward the fortress wall in a siege vehicle.
• Queller led his soldiers across the siege vehicle’s platform and charged into the Guardian Army defenders, scattering those near the landing point.
• Queller wounded several defenders as his men followed onto the wall, until elite Guardian Army soldiers arrived and the two sides clashed in a fierce melee.

Paul Greiman reviewed candidates for Lakeheart Town’s official representative in Horn Bay and chose Friedrich Lister, a merchant who admired Paul’s economic policies. He ordered the review of Lister’s book halted so he could read it himself, and instructed Old Ford and Cecil to support and monitor Lister as he took up the post.

• Old Ford and Cecil presented Paul with candidates for an official representative in Horn Bay, where Lakeheart Town needed a foothold and stronger official ties.
• Paul considered several candidates and favored Friedrich Lister, whose work for Todd Shipping Company had made him familiar with Horn Bay’s officials and society.
• Cecil told Paul that Lister admired his economic policies and had written a detailed book about them, prompting Paul to stop its publication review and request the manuscript.
• Old Ford suggested taking Lister into custody, but Paul rejected the idea and named him the tentative official representative in Horn Bay.
• Paul told Old Ford and Cecil to send people to assist Lister, ensure he followed Paul’s instructions, and deliver a long letter from Paul.

Friedrich Lister returned to Niceburg, where Raja and his companions planned to become mercenaries and met broker Sang Mahabayi. Mahabayi reunited with mercenary commanders Doug and Ferguson, and Ferguson’s companion Borgdan revealed he had been sent by their employer to accompany them.

• By the end of 1995, reports spread that the Eton Duchy had repelled the Guardian Army and the Horn Bay Alliance had captured Sigitas Fortress.
• Friedrich Lister reached Niceburg and thanked Raja and his two companions for escorting him there.
• Raja told Lister that the three companions planned to become mercenaries, and Sang Mahabayi offered to connect them with a mercenary group.
• Mahabayi recognized Doug and Ferguson when they entered the tavern and called them over.
• Ferguson grabbed Mahabayi over a job that had sent him to mine coal in the Northwest Bay, then released him when a companion intervened.
• The companion introduced himself as Borgdan and said Doug and Ferguson’s employer had sent him to accompany them.

Jerimin Erwin, traveling under the alias Borgdan, met Sanger Mahabayi in Horn Bay while overseeing the Black Dogs and the Rhinos and guiding Greiman Military Academy personnel on a study of the region’s military. Mahabayi offered to connect the mercenaries with a Council contract to reinforce the Alliance army, leaving Erwin to consider whether they would take on work beyond protecting Arda’s people and property.

• Erwin introduced himself to Mahabayi as a representative of Earl Paul Greiman, and Mahabayi eagerly praised the earl and offered his local connections.
• Doug confirmed that Mahabayi had many connections but warned Erwin to watch his prices.
• Mahabayi invited Erwin and the mercenary commanders to his table to share inside information, while Lister and Raja’s group stayed behind to meet them afterward.
• Mahabayi told Erwin that the Alliance army had suffered heavy losses despite its reported victory and that the Council was seeking mercenaries as reinforcements.
• Mahabayi offered to help the Black Dogs and the Rhinos secure a Council contract if Erwin allowed them to take on assignments beyond security work.

Erwin refused Mahabayi’s proposal to abandon their mission without instructions from Earl Greiman, while Raja’s group turned to the mercenary commanders instead. Dennis MacPhed appointed Friedrich Lister as Earl Greiman’s official representative in Cape Bay, and Lister asked Erwin, Doug, and Ferguson to assess his three friends as potential mercenaries.

• Erwin rejected Mahabayi’s proposal, and Doug and Ferguson agreed to follow Earl Greiman’s orders; Mahabayi left after offering to cooperate in the future.
• Raja decided his group no longer needed Mahabayi’s introductions and approached Erwin with Lister.
• Dennis MacPhed introduced himself to Lister and presented Earl Greiman’s appointment naming him Lakeheart Town’s representative in Cape Bay.
• Lister accepted the appointment and learned he had half a month to hand over his work at Todd Shipping Company before swearing an oath.
• Lister introduced Raja and his two companions to Dennis and asked whether the mercenary commanders could assess them.

Kalem returned to the Zalge Clan’s town after conquering a tribe and brought prisoners to Abaal Great Chieftain. Abaal welcomed him in the main tent, where trusted chiefs gathered around a fire-roasted cow.

• Kalem urged his warriors and bound orc prisoners to hurry through the winter cold toward the royal tent’s town.
• Kalem’s rise through the Zalge Clan’s ranks had made him one of Abaal’s five Ten-Thousand Commanders.
• Kalem reached the town, dismissed most of his warriors, and escorted the prisoners to Abaal as a gift.
• Kalem handed the prisoners over to the guards and entered Abaal’s tent to meet the Great Chieftain.

Kalem returned from defeating Chieftain Babaka and learned that Aru had invented portable milk powder, which the Great Chieftain saw as a major advantage for long campaigns. Alba ended by declaring that the orcs would one day seize all the Sugar Sand in the human kingdoms.

• Alba praised Kalem for capturing Babaka’s tribe and ordered him to treat the captured warriors well.
• Alba introduced Aru’s invention to Kalem, who watched as the milk boiled away and left a white powder.
• Aru served Kalem the milk powder, and Kalem tasted it and recognized its value as portable food for campaigning warriors.
• Aru suggested mixing Sugar Sand into the powder, and Alba vowed that the orcs would someday claim all the Sugar Sand in the human kingdoms.

Great Chieftain Alba discussed the Grassland Orcish plans to secure allies and a route through the Rocky Mountains, while considering the coming conflict in Gabella. He left the next steps dependent on Imar’s decision and hoped his son Aguirre would not disappoint him.

• Alba rewarded Aru for his victory and sent him away before asking Eugene about his mission to the Great Forest.
• Eugene reported that Asoye had rejected the invitation, but that Asoye’s son Gunther had expressed goodwill toward Alba; Arroyo argued for subjugating the Forest Orcish.
• Eugene revealed that Imar Stonemason would accept help reclaiming his succession rights in exchange for access to the Stonemason Clan’s passage through the Rocky Mountains.
• Alba explained that hidden valleys formed army-sized routes through the mountains, which could let the Grassland Orcish bypass the human Watchers Legion if they gained control of them.
• Aguirre reported that Gabella’s two Crown Princes were nearing open conflict and that he favored the elder prince, while Alba silently worried about his son’s judgment.

Alba gathered his subordinates to debate the royal tent’s next campaign, with factions arguing for expansion into the Lucky Forest, the eastern prairie, Auldo, or Gabella. Eugene urged securing the Lucky Forest’s wealth first, while Aguirre argued that Gabella was vulnerable because its Crown Princes were fighting; Alba had not yet chosen a direction.

• Alba summoned his subordinates to decide where the orcs should campaign next.
• The gathered leaders debated whether to expand into the Lucky Forest, the eastern prairie, Auldo, or Gabella.
• Eugene argued that controlling the Lucky Forest would provide wealth to buy weapons and armor for the orcs.
• Alba acknowledged Eugene’s proposal as sensible.
• Aguirre urged Alba to attack Gabella while its Crown Princes were divided over the throne.
• Alba acknowledged Aguirre’s argument as sensible as well.

The Orcish Generals debated whether to attack Aldo or unite the orcs, but the Great Shaman Ota West warned that a continent-wide disaster was gathering in the south. Alba ordered Eugene to spur a human prince into action and Aguirre to watch Gabella, while the orcs prepared for war.

• The Orcish Generals offered Alba differing plans, and Alba asked the silent Ota West for his opinion.
• Ota West said the Spirit of the Prairie had warned of a devastating storm that could destroy nations across the continent.
• Ota West compared the threatened nations to a phoenix reborn through fire and said he could not identify which nation would recover first.
• Alba ordered Eugene to encourage and provoke a prince to reclaim his inheritance with orc support, and told Aguirre to monitor Gabella.
• Alba’s orders spread across the prairie, and the orcs gathered weapons, armor, provisions, and War Horses in preparation for a campaign.

Wells visited Paul Greiman to make a sensitive request related to the recent rebellion, but Paul first showed him a new invention: a vacuum flask designed to keep boiled water hot. The chapter ended as Paul introduced the vacuum pump Gaye Berns had built to extract air from between the flask’s glass walls.

• Wells entered the Lord's Manor after passing the new security checks and went to Paul's workshop, where Gaye Berns was also present.
• Wells began to explain why he had come, but Paul interrupted him to show off a double-walled glass bottle.
• Paul explained his theory that removing the air between the glass walls would slow heat loss and keep water hot.
• Paul revealed the vacuum pump he had commissioned Gaye to build.

Paul demonstrated a vacuum pump to Wells and Gaye Berns, but the double-walled glass bottle shattered as air was pumped from its cavity. Wells then asked Paul to show mercy to his imprisoned student, whose surname was Fadeyev, and Paul reacted coldly because the Fadeyev family had been involved in the rebellion.

• Paul explained the vacuum pump and had a guard turn its crank to pump air from a double-walled glass bottle.
• The bottle shattered under the force of the surrounding air, and Paul said they would need a sturdier one.
• Paul asked Wells why he had come, and Wells explained that his talented chemistry student was named Fadeyev.
• Paul recalled that a Fadeyev family had participated in the rebellion and asked whether Wells's student was in prison.
• Wells confirmed that the student was imprisoned and cautiously asked Paul to show him mercy.

Paul agreed to release Tennyson Fadeyev if Wells and his colleagues developed a way to mass-produce steel, and allowed Tennyson to return to the laboratory under sentence. He then revealed that the prospective weapons customers from Horn Bay represented the Horn Bay Church, which wanted an advantage over the New Sect Army.

• Wells asked Paul to spare Tennyson Fadeyev, arguing that the student’s academic work made his involvement in the rebellion unlikely.
• Paul challenged Wells to discover how iron became steel and devise a method to produce steel in a blast furnace, offering to pardon Tennyson if he succeeded before the verdict and his uninvolved family if he succeeded within six months.
• Paul allowed Tennyson to return to Wells’s laboratory and sent Wells to Russ Hayden with a note directing him to arrange it.
• Paul told Berns that he had provoked Wells to keep the alchemists focused on the steel research.
• Paul revealed that the Horn Bay Church, fighting the New Sect Army, wanted to buy weapons and armor capable of overwhelming its enemy, and said he was willing to sell to them despite having sold weapons to the Horn Bay Alliance.