2 What I'll Do

Kuoka's mind permanently changed that day.

Overnight; he used think of the title as warlord as something eternally out of reach. It caused him to feel empty, as if he was useless no matter how much he learned and tried. It's something only those who were born into power could achieve. But overtime, this idea changed; from admiration and jealousy, to desire.

The old warlords were always kind and merciful, yet skilled and deceiving. Kuoka wanted to be like them; he wanted to be one of them. To be remembered, even after his death.

The sky seemed to feel different when he walked out of his room. It was changing colors: red, blue, orange, purple, green and more. And then it stopped. It became normal again, an irresistible urge firmly planted itself in his head. "I must become a great leader first, if I want to become a great warlord."

He rubbed his chin and pondered. "But how? Considering the circumstances right now. My nation is at war with a neighboring nation, I could use that. But then again, my family isn't exactly the richest and I'm from a remote village that's far away from the capital." He continued rubbing his chin on the balcony, overlooking the village.

"It'll probably be a week's walk from here to the capital, not counting the amount of money I would need, to stay alive, or the amount of time I would spend, resting. Hitching a ride might be possible, the people in this area seem nice enough to do that for a child. Or maybe I could try going to that neighboring nat- wait no they're losing the war... wait! If I can help them turn the tide and win the war, then..."

"I'll need to gather more information on this nation. If the enemy's soldiers are equipped with such high grade armor and weapons, then they might actually have a fighting chance. But that would still depend on a lot of things... this nation doesn't seem to have many high grade armors or weapons, so the catapults are the main problem..."

"I don't even know how many soldiers both sides have - it's still too early to make a decision. For now I'll remember it in my head. Go to the aid of the neighboring nation and help them win the war, in order to accumulate power. Or try and rise the ranks in this nation, by defeating the enemy nation swiftly while showing mercy. Another issue would be politically, the leaders could be corru-"

"How do I know all this? Actually, who told me all this??" He snapped back to reality when his mother poked his head. "Kuoka, what are you doing? You're scaring the villagers with your mumbling and fiddling."

"Sorry..." His mother sighed and crossed her arms. "It's probably about time I taught you about the nation our village resides in."

"What was all that?" He mumbled whilst walking behind his mother. "Why do I feel like this..." his mother slammed a chair against the floor. "You need to listen to this. You've been asking for a long time, I'll teach you about this nation so come sit down already."

Kuoka quickly rushed to the chair, and sat with a small amount of force. "Listen closely now. This nation is currently at war with a neighboring nation called Tira; and our nation currently doesn't have an official name. So I'll just call it nation R."

"Nation R is winning the war right now. But the economy is most likely on the brink of collapsing, so the top council has decided to sign a treaty with Tira. But I suspect that they might not be willing to actually agree to the treaty."

The details of the treaty were kept hidden from most of the people in nation R. Even Kuoka's mother didn't know. Especially the general population of both nations. However, among the few who knew... it was outrageous.

Tira had to give up 40 percent of it's land, especially places where farmland and flat plains were.

Tira didn't have to pay any money; but instead, had to re-supply nation R for all the supplies it had spent in the war with Tira. Which was nearly more than what they had.

Either way, Tira was going to end up losing the war. But they could decide what effect to give to the people of nation R. To put the country into deeper poverty in hopes of them being able to buy enough time for the people to start rebelling against their rulers? Or to let the people keep what they currently have and agree to surrender peacefully?

If they agreed to the treaty, then the following would most likely happen. Tira would give up most of their equipment, farmland and living space. Then after a year, nation R would attack again and force them to either sign the same treaty again, or destroy them completely.

If they refused, then they would most likely be destroyed. But they would inflict heavy burdens onto the governing power of nation R.

Which one were the better option. This argument caused a civil war in Tira, and nation R couldn't just watch the events unfold. They interfered on several occasions; on the side of signing the treaty. But not out of concern for both countries populace; but because they had to increase their own power.

"If we sign the treaty, then sooner or later, we'll be put into hard labor again! We should forget about the people and just fight for the honor of our nation!"

"Do you not care for the people! They are the ones spending everyday in hard labor, in order to support this nation. The same goes for the enemy as well! They have nothing to do with this war!"

Both arguments were supported by an equal amount of people, so it got nowhere.

The war would last half a decade with neither side giving an inch. And nation R was nearing the end of their patience as the economy slowly and steadily descended further, because of their heavy spending's to bend the tide of the civil war in their favor.

When he heard about the treaty from his mother for the first time. He suddenly fell into a deep thought. "Who's talking to me? What is all this..." a voice echoed around him, telling him about the treaty. When he opened his eyes; he was in his room. "How did I get here?"

Kuoka; who was 14 when the signing of the treaty began. Was now 19, and had enough of not being able to find a good moment to strike at a good opportunity. "The civil war didn't go around like I hoped it would..."

He'd hoped to join the side of the minority. But with the interference of nation R. Both sides became equal and there was no space of negotiations. It was what Kuoka hoped for, but both sides also had equal sized forces. Same equipment and the same tactics.

Even if Kuoka had gone to the aid of one side. He wouldn't gain much control or power.

If he went to the aid of the side who wanted to sign the treaty. He predicted that this would've most likely been what happened; he'd go to their leader and ask for permission to join the fight against the opposing faction with them, and if they denied, then he'd show them his prowess by defeating an opposing faction's campsite, singlehandedly.

But with the interference of nation R. That was simply not possible anymore, as Kuoka was a villager and they wouldn't trust him with anything. Nation R also hoped for as peaceful a signing as possible, so Kuoka's methods wouldn't work well with them.

If he'd joined the side which was against signing the treaty. Then nation R would most likely execute him for being a traitor if they'd lost. If not execution, then imprisonment was second option. How would he become a warlord if either one of these happened?

There were too many risks involved, and no one; not even Kuoka, could predict everything that would happen. He wanted to be a great warlord, not a god. "With all this in mind.... I think I know what I'll do."