War

In one of the rooms of the imperial palace, Kushira could be seen sleeping peacefully under the blankets, clearly exhausted from the events of the previous night.

On the other hand, Majin was changing his clothes from a wardrobe in the room. He had not slept at all; indeed, there wasn't much night left when he and Kushira finally ceased their passionate activities.

It was around 4 o'clock in the morning when they stopped, so Majin decided against sleeping, considering it a waste of time given the multitude of responsibilities awaiting him as the new Emperor.

Within a few minutes, he had changed into his imperial attire. His clothing, though not overly lavish, bore an authoritative look—his black shirt and pants adorned with golden linings on the edges struck a regal note.

After changing, Majin left the room, allowing Kushira to continue her peaceful slumber.

"Good morning, Your Majesty," greeted the ministers as Majin exited his room. They approached him, bowing deeply.

They had been waiting at a respectful distance from his door, careful not to disturb him or Kushira, knowing well the consequences of such an intrusion.

"Good morning," Majin replied, though his expression remained as cold and detached as ever, showing little regard for those around him. "Is there something you wish to discuss? Speak quickly," he commanded, walking past the ministers who hurried to keep pace with him.

"Your Majesty, some duke-rank noble clans have rebelled against us because of the empress's death," Minister of Defense Aika suddenly spoke up, his voice tinged with apprehension. "They have even established their own nation in the southeastern part of the empire in just one day."

Majin remained as cold and composed as ever. "Spread the news that if the rebels don't surrender within a week, the imperial court will poison the Taiga River with snakes," he commanded, reaching the garden of the imperial palace, now tainted with blood instead of flowers due to the events of the previous day.

The Taiga River was the sole water source in the southeastern part of the empire and sustained millions of people living in that region.

"B-But, Your Majesty, if we do that, millions might die," Aika protested, his voice growing slightly louder, betraying his tension. While he didn't particularly care about the lives of others, he saw the potential of converting those people into army slaves rather than wasting them.

"Did I stutter?" Majin's voice cut through the air as he stopped walking, fixing Aika with a stern gaze that sent shivers down the minister's spine.

Aika understood implicitly that when Majin gave an order, it had to be carried out, no matter the consequences.

"I understand, Your Majesty," Aika acquiesced, his tone subdued. "I shall prepare the poison and snakes to be thrown into the Taiga River."

But don't think for a moment that Majin was ordering this on a whim. He had a plan—a calculated move to instill fear in the people of the southeastern region.

Like if the news of poison being dumped into the Taiga River because of the rebels were to reach the people of the southeastern region, they would most likely rebel against the noble clans that formed a new nation there.

After all, who would want to die because their water supply is poisoned?

It's just a simple trick from Majin. He doesn't really plan to kill millions of people over this. If they rebel and overthrow the noble clans, they will be safe; if they don't, everyone will die.

As for if the plan didn't work and they ended up having to dump poison into the river, killing everyone, what would they do with the river then? It's pretty simple: they could just use medical ninjas to remove the poison from the river.

But although medical ninjas can remove poison from the river, it would take thousands of them to do this, which the southeastern region really doesn't have.

Soon, Majin and the ministers enter a dark and gloomy room which had stairs leading down.

"Is everything ready?" Majin asked one of the ministers as they started to descend the stairs.

"Yes, Your Imperial Highness."

Hearing this, Majin gave a smile for a few seconds before turning cold again, because what was down there is something that will help him in his next plan.

Let me ask you, what do you think someone who just became the emperor would do—stabilize the nation? Try to make alliances with neighboring nations? Nah, that's not something Majin would do.

What he will do is...

War.