Chapter Summaries

Virut exposed the Tulu Family’s plan to rebel and let them begin preparing before ordering the Imperial army to crush them. The family was captured, and Virut prepared to take them to the Imperial Capital for trial as other challenges to imperial authority remained widespread.

• Virut declared his loyalty to Emperor Derek and told the Tulu Family he had arrived.
• The Tulu patriarch decided the family would flee the Empire, while Baderick would lead a doomed rebellion as their final resistance.
• Virut watched the preparations and explained that rebellion was unforgivable, then ordered the army to enter the city.
• The Guard Division took command of the garrison, and Imperial forces seized Baderick and captured the Tulu Family.
• The Tulu patriarch accused Virut of deceiving him, but Virut reminded him of their past and said the captured rebels would face trial.

Derek announced an overseas royal tour to signal the Empire’s intention to expand and settle beyond its shores, despite officials’ concerns for his safety. As the navy secured the route to the White Sand Archipelago, Derek’s decision drove a surge in ship prices and immigration.

• Derek recalled Virut and sent Simon to tour the regions while using the Tulu Family’s rebellion as grounds to execute them and begin a wider purge.
• Derek announced a royal tour overseas, but Adrian and other officials persuaded him to limit it to the White Sand Archipelago.
• Adrian ordered the navy to patrol the route from Digen Port, inspect islands and ships, and suppress pirates before Derek’s voyage.
• The naval crackdown disrupted pirates and merchant ships posing as them, while news of Derek’s tour intensified maritime trade and immigration.
• Adrian learned that seagoing ship prices had risen by thirty percent and immigration had doubled, then received Baronet Corison of the Connor Family.

Adrian helped Corison secure seagoing ship orders and learned how the Empire’s push to inspect the New Continent had sparked a surge in trade and migration. On the New Continent, Olyck arrived at Silver Port to reunite with his brother Good and heard someone call for him.

• Corison asked Adrian to help him buy seagoing ships, and Adrian arranged some orders through his secretary.
• Adrian investigated the ship shortage and learned that the Emperor’s planned inspection had driven merchants and families to invest in maritime trade and migration.
• As migrants flooded the colonies, Little Governor Jefferies launched a new round of settlement construction.
• Olyck arrived at Silver Port after traveling from the mainland to join his brother Good, and someone called his name in a strange accent.

Olyck arrived in the colonies and discovered that his brother Good had become a wealthy businessman, then joined him in the City of Silver to pursue a career of his own. Meanwhile, Hubble waited for an official assignment and resolved to claim imperial benefits and exploit Tool Mutes.

• Aiqi met Olyck at Silver Port and took him aboard a steamship owned by Good.
• Olyck traveled to the City of Silver, where he was astonished by Good's trading company and reunited with his brother.
• Good welcomed Olyck, who soon settled in and insisted on making something of himself rather than taking it easy.
• Hubble listened to an immigration official describe colonial benefits and warn citizens against sympathizing with Tool Mutes.
• Hubble decided to claim the Empire's benefits and exploit Tool Mutes to get rich.

Hubble settled in Emerald Town as an immigrant landowner, reclaimed farmland, and grew accustomed to exploiting his assigned Tool Mutes. On a routine walk home, he and one Tool Mute were ambushed by armed figures, leaving Hubble fighting for his life.

• Hubble chose Emerald Town and received a cabin, supplies, a rifle, start-up funds, land rights, and two Tool Mutes.
• The mayor showed Hubble and the other immigrants the town's defenses, while the militia captain explained that Emerald Town had been named after a mistaken identification of green rust.
• Hubble moved into his cabin, put his Tool Mutes to work, and joined the other immigrants in planting beans on reclaimed land.
• Hubble walked back from town with a Tool Mute carrying supplies when several dark figures sprang from the grass and knocked the Tool Mute down.
• Hubble shot two attackers, but the remaining figures charged him with weapons as he tried to reload.

Hubble survived an ambush by black slaves and learned from the captive that a small tribe lived near Emerald Town. He recruited two immigrants and set out with their Mutes to capture the tribe, finally spotting a black slave hunting party after a week of searching.

• Tool Mutes rose unexpectedly and helped Hubble kill the three black slaves who had attacked them.
• Hubble had Tool Mutes interrogate the wounded captive, then ordered him killed when he heard watchpost soldiers approaching.
• Hubble told the militia that wandering black slaves had attacked him, and his survival made him famous in Emerald Town.
• After learning of a nearby black slave tribe, Hubble persuaded two immigrant farmers to join him in a slave-hunting expedition.
• Hubble's team searched for a week and finally spotted a black slave hunting party.

Hubble and his partners captured an entire Black Slave tribe and grew wealthy from the spoils. After the New Year, Emperor Derek began a voyage aboard the Empire’s largest battleship, confident in the Empire’s growing power.

• Hubble led a nine-person party in ambushing a Black Slave hunting party and capturing its survivors.
• Hubble persuaded his partners to attack the Black Slave tribe, and they seized its people and valuables.
• Hubble returned to Emerald Town with a long chain of slaves, then used his earnings to expand his slave-hunting business.
• Emperor Derek arrived at Digen Port and boarded the Imperial-class Battleship with Adrian as the Navy prepared to escort him.
• The Imperial fleet set sail, and Derek surveyed the sea, convinced the Empire’s reach and strength would keep growing.

Great Emperor Derek arrived at White Sands Port and reunited with Ben, his former Northland Knight who had served as port governor for eight years. Derek honored Ben’s loyalty and reassured him that the Empire needed him to guard its territory and share in its glory, leaving them to continue together through the port.

• The Empire halted shipping across the White Sand Archipelago as Derek’s fleet arrived, and subjects and naval ships welcomed him with cheers and ceremonial salutes.
• Derek disembarked at White Sands Port and greeted Ben, who knelt in his knight’s uniform and declared his loyalty.
• Derek helped Ben rise and said the Empire needed him to guard its territory rather than risk his life in battle.
• Ben offered to lead Derek’s horse, and Derek accepted as they set off through the port.
• Derek recalled Ben’s eagerness to lead his horse when he first became a knight, and Ben admitted he had feared being dismissed and sent back to farming.

Derek inspected the White Sand Archipelago, then sailed toward the southern frontier and prepared to receive the local nobles. Count Chavez waited anxiously for the Emperor’s arrival, mindful of the recent rebellion and the power of the Imperial army.

• Derek toured the White Sand Archipelago’s naval bases and fortifications, then assessed a remote island chosen for an airport.
• Derek returned to his ship and received reports that the Empire’s operations continued smoothly during his absence.
• The Imperial fleet turned toward Digen Port and the southern frontier, where Count Angelo Chavez prepared to welcome Derek.
• Count Chavez recalled how Simon’s Guard Divisions and the railway had demonstrated the central government’s ability to crush rebellion.
• Count Chavez and the southern nobles waited at the docks for Derek, while nobles who had surrendered late stood apart from him.

Count Chavez and the Southern nobles awaited Emperor Derek’s arrival while the Eighth Investigation Department monitored them for disloyalty. Derek landed safely, acknowledged Chavez’s contributions, and told him he did not need to wait for hours next time.

• Andre complained that Count Chavez served the Emperor and accused some Southern nobles of forgetting their fallen relatives, while others urged him to watch his words.
• The Eighth Investigation Department watched Andre’s group and hoped to expose disloyal nobles, while its director ordered his agents to prioritize the Emperor’s safety.
• The fleet arrived at the harbor, prompting the troops and Imperial Guards to secure the area before Derek disembarked.
• Derek reflected on the hardships of a long sea voyage and then greeted Count Chavez, telling him he need not stand waiting for hours in the future.

Derek visited Count Chavez’s southern estate, where a lavish banquet showcased the Chavez Family’s standing and loyalty to the Empire. When Count Chavez performed a sword dance, Derek realized he was testing whether the Emperor meant to harm him, though the exchange left the question unresolved.

• Count Chavez and the southern nobles greeted Derek, who exchanged pleasantries with them and let the earlier whispers pass.
• Count Chavez hosted Derek at his estate, which had been renovated into a temporary palace and staffed by the Chavez Family’s trusted servants.
• At a banquet attended by nobles and officials, Count Chavez asked permission to perform a sword dance, and Derek tossed him his own sword.
• Count Chavez thanked Derek, then performed an increasingly skillful dance that revealed he was sober and deliberate.
• Derek watched with apparent drunkenness and gradually recognized that Count Chavez was testing his intentions.

At a banquet, Derek responded to Count Chavez’s sword dance by praising his service while ordering the Chavez Family’s private army reorganized into local Garrison Divisions. Count Chavez later interpreted the order as both a reduction of his family’s power and protection, while Derek resolved to continue centralizing military authority across the Empire.

• Derek praised Count Chavez’s sword dance and told him that the Empire was at peace and had no need for force.
• Derek cleared Count Chavez’s name, ordered the Chavez Family’s private army reorganized into local Garrison Divisions, and confirmed the family’s hereditary title.
• Count Chavez kept watch through the night and concluded that reorganizing the army would weaken the family while protecting it from harsher punishment.
• Derek read memorials, then decided that stripping private armies from powerful clans would be the first step toward centralizing power in the Great Xia Empire.

Count Chavez surrendered his family’s private soldiers to the Empire and suppressed officers who wanted to resist the reorganization. Andre, backed by dissatisfied nobles, tried to recruit him into opposing the northerners, but Count Chavez suspected Andre belonged to the Eighth Investigation Department.

• The Ministry of Army reorganized the Chavez Family’s private soldiers into an imperial division, and Count Chavez ordered loyal family officers who objected to leave the army and serve him personally.
• Count Chavez accepted the Ministry of Army’s officers and continued guarding the Emperor, while nobles angry about the surrender criticized him.
• Andre gained support from dissatisfied nobles and approached Count Chavez as he changed shifts, blaming the northerners for the loss of his military authority.
• Count Chavez questioned Andre about whether he belonged to the Eighth Investigation Department.

After the Eighth Investigation Department’s operation against Count Chavez was exposed, Derek replaced its director with Peter and warned him to keep the department within its proper limits. Peter met Derek and accepted his new role as the emperor’s eyes and ears.

• Count Chavez had Andre seized and handed over to the Internal Guard after recognizing the Eighth Investigation Department’s attempt to lure information from him.
• Derek decided the Eighth Investigation Department had crossed the line and ordered Peter transferred from the Ninth Investigation Department to lead it.
• Andre was eventually released, while Peter quietly arrived in the south to take up his new post.
• Peter met Derek, promised to monitor those above and below, and was warned not to exceed his role as the emperor’s eyes and ears.

After consolidating Imperial control in the south, Derek arrived at Sleepless Port in the former Griffin Kingdom, where native tribal leaders prepared to seek concessions or rebel. Habayer and other tribal nobles were awed by the Empire’s power as they waited for the Emperor.

• Derek spent a month meeting southern officials, while the Guard Division dismantled illegal armed groups and the Chavez Family reorganized its private forces.
• Derek set out for the former Griffin Kingdom, where Simon’s brutal suppression had reduced rebellions but left the native tribes exhausted and fearful.
• Tribal leaders divided over whether to negotiate with Derek or stage a rebellion, and Habayer supported seeking a peaceful resolution and special pardon.
• Habayer dressed as an Imperial noble and traveled from the mountains to Sleepless Port as Derek arrived.
• Habayer and other tribal nobles saw the Empire’s warships, soldiers, and prosperous city, and some who had favored rebellion reconsidered.

Habayer and the Hundred Shanyue Tribes traveled to Sleepless Port to ask Derek for territory and a place in the Great Xia Empire. After Derek granted them an audience, one young noble demanded the imperial residence and the city in exchange for the tribes’ allegiance.

• Peter’s agents tracked Habayer’s group in Sleepless Port and overheard them argue over claiming the mountains and the city.
• Peter passed the report to Derek, who laughed at the Shanyue nobles’ demands and agreed to receive them.
• Habayer and his companions entered the imperial residence and were dazzled by its splendor.
• A young noble demanded that Derek give him the imperial residence and Sleepless Port in exchange for the Hundred Shanyue Tribes’ allegiance.

A Shanyue noble threatened Derek, and Simon killed him in the imperial hall. Derek sent Simon and the Guard Division to test the Shanyue Tribes, while observers began to stir.

• Derek heard a Shanyue noble demand land and threaten to rally his warriors, while Habayer begged for forgiveness.
• Peter reported that the noble’s tribe had only five to six thousand people and could muster just over a thousand fighters.
• Derek ordered Simon to kill the noble, and Simon beheaded him before the horrified court.
• Simon asked to lead the Guard Division against the Shanyue Tribes, and Derek granted his request, promising them land if they could withstand the attack.
• Palace attendants dragged Habayer and the other envoys away, as people watching Great Xia began to stir.

Former-clan survivors plotted to assassinate the Great Xia Emperor, while Simon led Guard Divisions into the mountains to punish the Hundred Shanyue Tribes. The divisions began their campaign, unaware that their opponents still believed the mountains would protect them.

• The organizer gathered surviving former-clan members and proposed killing the Great Xia Emperor, claiming his identity could bring him close to the ruler.
• Simon learned that the Emperor had arranged his withdrawal with a larger plan and set out to attack the Hundred Shanyue Tribes.
• Simon studied the mountain tribes’ territory and ordered the main force to pin down nearby tribes while he led troops against the tribe of the man who had insulted him.
• The Guard Divisions received their orders and advanced, prompting the Shanyue Tribe and its neighbors to prepare to retreat into the mountains and wage guerrilla warfare.
• The tribes trusted the mountains to protect them, unaware that the Guard Divisions had trained extensively for forest and mountain combat.

Simon led the Guard Division in a surprise attack on a Shanyue stronghold, massacred its leaders, and ordered a Jingguan built and photographed. As the violence spread through the mountains and the empire, Pierre read the newspaper and concluded that Simon could not be near the Emperor, so he needed to confirm Simon’s location.

• Simon and the Guard Division infiltrated a Shanyue camp and overwhelmed its defenders with a one-sided attack.
• Simon ordered the captured chieftains and nobles killed, then had their heads used to build a Jingguan for newspaper photographs.
• Reinforcements arrived the next afternoon, found the camp deserted, and recoiled at the massacre while the Two-Headed Dragon Banner remained raised.
• The Guard Division continued hunting the Hundred Shanyue Tribes, and a photograph of Simon before the Jingguan spread across the empire.
• Pierre read the newspaper, voiced public support for Simon, and privately decided Simon could not be near His Majesty the Emperor, making it essential to confirm his whereabouts.

Pierre and his brother Saidi conspired to assassinate the Great Xia Emperor, while Derek sent two Guard Divisions to suppress unrest across Griffin Peninsula. With the Emperor’s protection weakened, Saidi decided to strike.

• Pierre inspected his post and returned to his quarters, where Saidi was waiting through a secret passage.
• Saidi told Pierre that their group had decided to act, and Pierre asked about their plan and escape.
• Saidi suspected Pierre might have defected, but Pierre agreed to help and discussed the assassination with him.
• Derek ordered two Guard Divisions to Griffin Peninsula to suppress riots and uprisings.
• Saidi and the displaced people tracked the troop movements and saw that the imperial residence had only one Guard Division left.
• Saidi called the moment a heaven-sent opportunity and decided to act.