Chapter Summaries

Sanger arrived in Silver City as an envoy and discovered that his councilor status carried little weight in the Northern Duchy's colony. Governor Little Jefferies planned to exploit Sanger's conflicts with the other councilors and send him back without committing to war.

• Sanger watched local children playing in the snow and concluded that residents of the Northern Duchy's colony enjoyed comfortable lives and that the colony had considerable war potential.
• Sanger reached Silver City and was told to wait at a courtyard until the Governor had time to see him, then offered an officer a Gold Coin to request an earlier meeting.
• The officer gave the Gold Coin to a soldier to buy drinks, leaving Sanger embarrassed by how little influence his money had.
• Governor Little Jefferies learned that Sanger had stayed calm despite the insult and discussed using his disputes with the other councilors to create internal conflict.
• Little Governor Jefferies ordered Sanger to be invited to meet him the next day and planned to persuade him to return home.

Sanger met Little Governor Jefferies to seek reassurance that the Northern Duchy would not go to war with his country. Impressed by Jefferies and his world, Sanger left with a promise that trade could continue next year and that Jefferies would support his Caravan.

• Sanger visited the Governor's Mansion and was humbled by its northern style, the Jefferies Family's traditions, and Little Governor Jefferies's status.
• Little Governor Jefferies praised Sanger's abilities, then spent several days taking him out to eat, drink, explore, and watch a military drill.
• After the two grew familiar, Sanger asked for reassurance, and Little Governor Jefferies said they would not go to war for the time being.
• Little Governor Jefferies promised that trade could continue next year and that he would back Sanger's Caravan if it came under Sanger's banner.
• Little Governor Jefferies arranged a grand send-off as Sanger prepared to return home.

Sanger joined Little Governor Jefferies for an extravagant farewell hunt, traveling in a gifted automobile with a vast army before sailing home loaded with gifts. As Jefferies regretted the expense and Sanger reconsidered the value of money, Sanger decided to get rich first and pursue greater refinement later.

• Little Governor Jefferies kept Sanger waiting, then showed off a rare automobile sent from the Duchy and took him along for a farewell outing.
• After leaving the city, Jefferies led Sanger to a massive military hunt, where thousands of soldiers and cavalry drove game across the plain.
• Sanger and Jefferies hunted for a week, collecting game and lion cubs before reaching the docks, where Jefferies sent Sanger off with a ship full of gifts.
• Jefferies complained that the farewell had cost him a fortune, while Sanger admired the cigars and rare goods he had received.
• Sanger decided to make money first and elevate his spiritual realm only after becoming as wealthy as his big brother.

As the Griffin Kingdom neared defeat, the Duchy prospered, with new schools planned and students debating the Intellectual Property and Secrecy Act. During a campus visit, Derek agreed to proclaim an empire in the Duchy's tenth year, and Virut planned to announce the news to the newspapers.

• Newspapers reported the Griffin Kingdom's decline and praised Colonial Governor Count Little Jefferies's visit to the colony.
• Hadley University students argued over the new Intellectual Property and Secrecy Act and discussed jobs at planned industrial and mechanical colleges.
• Derek toured the campus with Virut and Adrian and reflected that the Duchy could now run without his constant supervision.
• Virut proposed changing the state's title in the Duchy's tenth year, and Derek agreed to proclaim an empire.
• Virut decided to leak the news to newspapers the next day as a New Year celebration.

Virut used the Army Daily to bring public attention to changing the country’s name, and Derek’s recommendation letters piled up as debate spread. Adrian asked Derek whether he would return to the Ferrera Family for New Year, and Derek agreed.

• Virut summoned the Army Daily’s editor-in-chief and two reporters, then approved an article hinting that changing the country’s name was under consideration.
• The Army Daily published the article, prompting widespread discussion and a flood of recommendation letters for Derek.
• Adrian visited Derek and asked whether he would return to the Ferrera Family for New Year.
• Derek agreed to go back, noting that he expected to have fewer chances to return in the future.

Derek returned to Northern Province for the New Year, drawing the attention of its nobles and officials. On the journey, he discussed the Northern Duchy’s aircraft research with Little Tru, then arrived at Ferreira Castle to a formal reception.

• News of Derek’s planned return sent Northern Province’s officials, military, and noble families into action.
• Little Tru joined Derek’s convoy and drove him toward Ferreira Territory in a newly mass-produced automobile.
• Derek questioned Little Tru about aircraft research, learned that pilots had died during testing, and urged him to support the project and care for the pilots’ families.
• As the convoy crossed Northern Province, local troops and the children of Northland Nobles followed it to seek the Duke’s attention.
• Derek arrived at Ferreira Castle, where nobles gathered to greet him and Baron Ferrera and his wife waited outside.

Derek brought the Ferrera family into the castle and welcomed the nobles who had gathered there. Little Tru returned to Haystack Village, where relatives and old comrades celebrated his success and asked about new equipment and the Duke’s attitude, as snow began to fall.

• Derek brought his parents and the rest of the Ferrera family into the castle, then sent his children off to explore.
• Derek received a stream of visiting nobles and spoke with the younger generation.
• Little Tru left the castle banquet and returned by car to the crowded Haystack Village.
• Little Tru reunited with his parents and siblings, and urged his parents to move to Pulan City for the children’s education.
• Little Tru’s old military comrades visited him, asked about new equipment and the Duke’s attitude, and he answered cautiously.
• Little Tru said Haystack Village had changed as snow began to fall.

Little Tru hid from a stream of visitors and spent his holiday entertaining Tiona’s two young masters. At the front, Count Andre confronted Simon over the executions of Griffin nobles and decided he had to act against the slaughter.

• Little Tru escaped the crowds by retreating to Ferreira Castle, where he took the two young masters out to play.
• As the Griffin Kingdom’s winter crisis worsened, Count Andre asked Simon to release nobles accused of funding the rebels.
• Simon refused and revealed that another batch of nobles was being executed outside the command tent.
• Count Andre condemned Simon’s killings as indiscriminate, but Simon insisted that no one was innocent and ended Andre’s hopes of stopping him.
• Count Andre left the camp resolved to act and considered his continuing ties to the Griffin Kingdom’s resistance army.

Simon had Andre watched while Andre conspired with Viscount Sommer to weaken Simon and preserve the Griffin Kingdom’s strength. Andre executed his noble prisoners to disguise his intentions, but Simon anticipated the plot and ordered Sommer seized if he returned.

• Simon ordered the Ninth Investigation Department to watch Andre, whom he had already decided to execute once he had evidence.
• Viscount Sommer asked Andre to help him surrender, but Andre instead recruited him into a plan to contact the Griffin Kingdom and undermine Simon.
• Sommer agreed to join Andre, and Andre decided to kill the noble prisoners in his custody to disguise his continued loyalty to the Griffin Kingdom.
• Andre poisoned the prisoners’ meals and executed them, making it appear that he had cut his final ties to the Griffin Kingdom.
• After hearing the spy’s report, Simon ordered his men to watch Sommer and seize him if he returned.

Viscount Sommer delivered Count Andre’s intelligence to the Griffin Kingdom, whose royal family agreed to gamble on a plan to attack Simon. Before Andre could carry out the conspiracy, Viscount Hubble arrested him in Simon’s name.

• Viscount Sommer chose to trust Count Andre and secretly handed the intelligence to the Griffin Kingdom’s royal family.
• The old King and Duke Lehman agreed to act before the New Year, hoping to win a chance to negotiate and send the royal family overseas.
• Count Andre waited for the Griffin Kingdom’s troops to strike, unaware that Simon had already anticipated his scheme.
• Viscount Hubble stormed into Andre’s tent with soldiers and announced that he was arresting Andre on General Simon’s orders.
• Andre’s guards were disarmed, and the camp’s officers and soldiers stood aside as Hubble’s men seized him.

Simon ordered Count Andre hanged without an interrogation after Viscount Hubble brought him in as a captured rebel. Meanwhile, the Griffin Kingdom’s remaining elite forces assembled for a final campaign, and Duke Lehman departed after the King wished him victory and a safe return.

• Viscount Hubble escorted the captured Andre to Simon, who ordered him hanged without questioning him.
• Andre protested his arrest and accused Simon of trying to destroy the Griffin Bloodline, but Hubble rejected his pleas and ordered the execution.
• The soldiers hanged Andre, and Hubble watched his body sway, resolving to remember the fate of someone who had overstepped his place.
• The Griffin Kingdom gathered its remaining elite troops for a final campaign, unaware that Andre had already died.
• Duke Lehman donned his family’s armor, and the King shared a final cup of wine with him before he departed to gamble on victory.

Duke Lehman’s gamble to strike the Northern Duchy failed when Simon’s forces encircled his army, and Lehman killed himself rather than be captured. The old King gathered the Griffin Royal House for a wine feast and hinted that he had good news, leaving the fate of the royal family unresolved.

• Duke Lehman led the Griffin Kingdom’s last elite forces toward Simon’s camp, believing they could exploit a weak point in the Northern Duchy’s defenses.
• Simon ordered his commanders to destroy the Griffin Kingdom’s forces without compromise and aimed to finish the battle before the New Year.
• Northern Duchy troops and defectors surrounded Lehman’s army, cut off its retreat, and bombarded it as the encirclement tightened.
• Viscount Hubble and other Northern Duchy officers offered rewards for capturing Lehman alive, but Lehman shot himself and his guards charged into battle.
• The old King summoned the Griffin Royal House to drink wine and promised to share good news, leading the family to suspect Lehman’s expedition had succeeded.

The Griffin Kingdom fell after its king and surviving leaders poisoned themselves, while the Northern Duchy entered its tenth year amid celebrations and growing calls to establish an empire. Derek rewarded Simon for his victory and returned to Pulan City, where he chose to proceed with the empire’s founding preparations without rushing or abandoning established customs.

• The old King and his followers died after drinking poisoned wine, leaving the Griffin Kingdom’s defenses weakened and its defeat imminent.
• Derek celebrated the New Year with his family at Ferreira Castle and declared his ambition to create an empire that would rule the world.
• Derek appointed Simon Griffin Count and made the position of Commander of the Royal Guard hereditary in the Simon Family, binding them to the Southern Strait.
• Northland nobles and people across the duchy called for an empire as Derek returned to Pulan City.
• Derek told Tiona to let preparations proceed but kept the Duke’s Mansion’s usual customs, insisting the empire should be built on a solid foundation.

Derek and his family spent the months after New Year visiting impoverished communities, hearing complaints, and building public support as the state-title change continued. When Archbishop John proposed that Derek unite religious and royal authority by wearing both crowns, Derek agreed and declared he would be the one and only Emperor.

• Derek and Tiona took their sons through the slums, distributed food and oil, and listened to residents’ concerns.
• Derek told officials to focus on ordinary people and said he would monitor their work, while newspapers publicized the ducal family’s outreach.
• The ducal family’s public campaign continued with visits to fields and communities, and its prestige rose as the state-title change proceeded.
• Archbishop John visited Hadley University and then met Derek to discuss the coming change of state title.
• Archbishop John proposed that Derek wear both the Emperor’s and Pope’s crowns, and Derek accepted, insisting on becoming the one and only Emperor.

Benjamin and Sanger celebrated the launch of the New Era-class Ironclad as the New Continent colony grew more powerful and wary of the Lionheart Kingdom. A delegation of greedy homeland nobles arrived, setting the stage for a clash over the colony’s growing independence.

• Benjamin and the Northern Duchy technicians launched the 930-ton New Era-class Ironclad after struggling to train the local workers.
• Sanger praised Benjamin, backed his bid for a hereditary title, and announced plans for a privately owned shipyard using northern technology.
• The colony’s councilors discussed ordering more Ironclads and recognized that pressure from the homeland posed a greater threat than their internal rivalries.
• Duke Harrington and other Lionheart Kingdom nobles arrived in the New Continent, viewing its prosperity as an opportunity to claim its wealth.

Duke Harrington’s delegation tried to claim control of the New Continent’s assembly, but Sanger and Councilman White rejected his authority and asserted the colony’s independence. That night, White asked Sanger whether his Northern Duchy connections could help contact its government.

• Duke Harrington arrived with homeland nobles, and Sanger and the New Continent’s powerholders viewed them with contempt.
• A noble demanded that the councilors hand over power to Duke Harrington, who had been appointed Speaker by the Queen.
• Sanger refused to join the lower house, challenged the Queen’s authority to appoint a Speaker, and left the reception.
• Councilman White backed Sanger and told Duke Harrington that the New Continent had its own rules.
• White met Sanger at his villa that night and asked whether Little Governor Jefferies could connect them to the Northern Duchy government.

Councilor Sanger persuaded Councilman White that the Lionheart Kingdom should buy warships from the Northern Duchy rather than wait decades to build its own. The council authorized an envoy mission, and Sanger set off with Councilor Joey to invite Governor Jefferies and negotiate a purchase.

• Sanger offered to arrange a visit from Governor Jefferies after Councilman White asked about meeting the Northern Duchy’s powerful governor.
• Sanger argued that the Lionheart Kingdom could not catch up with the Northern Duchy’s warship technology in time and should buy ships instead.
• Councilman White consulted the powerful councilors, who agreed that buying warships was preferable to surrendering their industries to the mainland.
• The council gave Sanger a letter of authorization and chose Councilor Joey to accompany him as the naval fleet’s representative.
• Sanger departed for the Northern Duchy after sending Governor Jefferies a letter announcing his visit and the money they would bring.

Sanger and Councilor Joey traveled to the Northern Duchy to negotiate the purchase of warships, with Governor Jefferies arranging their reception and a fleet escort. They reached Silver Port, where Sanger noticed the port was busier than on his previous visit.

• Governor Jefferies received Sanger’s letter about buying warships, informed the homeland, and contacted Commander Lawrence.
• Councilor Joey asked Sanger to help secure several warships, and Sanger promised to negotiate through his connections.
• A Northern Duchy fleet met Sanger and Joey’s ship and escorted it toward Gemstone Port.
• Sanger and Joey continued inland to Silver Port, where Sanger saw crowds of farm owners and noted the port’s increased activity.

Councilor Sanger and Councilor Joey arrived in Silver City and secured Count Little Jefferies’s help in obtaining warships. The Governor proposed selling them active-service ships from the colonial navy, though Joey remained wary of their condition.

• Councilor Joey traveled through Silver Port and Silver City, where he observed the colony’s bustling trade and widespread Mo slavery.
• Count Little Jefferies welcomed Sanger, who presented him with a grand golden coral sculpture and won his cordial support.
• Sanger asked the Governor to help buy two warships and lend his presence to strengthen their position against rivals on the mainland.
• Joey offered to pay more, prompting Little Jefferies to agree to help and propose selling active-service colonial warships with stored ammunition.
• Joey asked whether the ships might have problems, and the Governor said the Warrior-class vessels were relatively new and could serve for decades with care.

Councilor Joey bought two well-maintained Warrior-class warships from Little Governor Jefferies, then caught sight of a Battlecruiser and desperately tried to buy it. Jefferies refused, leaving Joey to board the formidable vessel in awe.

• Sanger and Joey negotiated with Little Governor Jefferies, who agreed to sell Warrior-class warships for 1.5 million gold coins each and receive a kickback.
• Ten days later, Jefferies met Commander Lawrence at Gemstone Port, where the two staged a fierce conflict before Jefferies prevailed and arranged delivery of the ships.
• Joey inspected the Warrior-class warships and selected two, which came with complete maintenance manuals and were ready for combat.
• Jefferies showed Joey a Battlecruiser, whose speed, armor, and firepower astonished him.
• Joey asked to buy the Battlecruiser, but Jefferies refused, and Joey boarded it with reverence.