More than a decade ago, in the Skyline District... Yes, the very same Skyline District that had now fallen completely into chaos. But Rome was not built in a day, and a wall of ice did not freeze three feet thick overnight. The rebellion in the Skyline District likewise had a broad popular foundation: people too poor to survive.
Harsh, bitter lands produced many generous souls willing to sing of sorrow, and the Skyline District was no exception. As the governing district in Radiance's northeast, the Skyline District had a fierce and warlike folk. The locals all valued death over life, kept their promises at any cost, and relied on their ancestors' religious beliefs to strengthen their convictions. Such commoners were naturally difficult to rule. The history of the Skyline District's governance was a history of compromise. Sometimes Radiance sent people to suppress them brutally; sometimes people from the Skyline District became governors and allowed the region to recuperate. In any case, they were always causing trouble, but overall, things remained relatively peaceful.
But several decades ago, Radiance changed its "gentle" policy toward the Skyline District. Several governors in succession belonged to the hard-line faction. They destroyed the ancestral temples of the Skyline people and provoked conflicts among the local clans. Most importantly, under the pretext of diverting rivers and developing water conservancy, they forcibly relocated the populace.
Looking back afterward, Radiance's strategy had not actually been wrong. Destroying the ancestral temples suppressed the power of the clans. Provoking conflicts among the local clans weakened the great families. Relocating the populace redistributed the surplus to areas in need—the Skyline District had far too many able-bodied workers. Wouldn't sending them to other districts to help build the nation be wonderful? Why leave them in this bitter, freezing land to fight and