The King Of Yuhin

The King Of Yuhin was sitting comfortably on his throne, the Throne room was lavish, decorated with drapes of purple and white silk that were spun across the ceiling. The walls were painted with illustrations of the Kingdom's young history. A chandelier of candles was hanging from the ceiling, providing light for the room since the windows were closed and the drapes were lowered.

Besides him was another throne, the throne of the queen. His queen died when the princess was born and he was left alone, he didn't take any concubines nor did he take any woman to replace his love, he would often say. His love will not fade for her majesty.

The King was left with only his two children, the princess, and the last prince. The two eldest princes were killed during a diplomatic mission to the Herlion Kingdom, the princess had just returned from the battle he observed. A Pyrrhic Victory in his eyes, the weight of him losing most of his family was too much to bear but he still maintained his image as a wise and calm king.

He was alone in the throne room, the guards were all outside and only those who were summoned by the king himself could enter.

The large doors of the throne room burst open. The Grand Mage of Yuhin came running to the king. This was a violation of castle etiquette but seeing the scorned face of the old man, he couldn't bring himself to scold him.

The Grandmage was an old man in his 70s, the most powerful mage in the kingdom and one of the most powerful in the continent, he had short white hair and a gray straight beard that had a pointed end. His face was frail and full of wrinkles but behind his seemingly weak appearance was a strong mage capable of leveling entire cities.

"Death! I bring news of Death!" The Grandmage was in a panic.

The King rose from his throne, visibly confused.

The Grandmage fell to his knees as he neared the throne, several guards came running into the throne room. The king went and helped the old man stand. Grandmage grabbed the king by his shoulders.

"Prince Avan is dead"

The king was frozen in place, shocked at the revelation. He refused to believe it, no he didn't want to lose another of his loved ones.

"No, that can't be true" The king denied.

"I felt it! your majesty, your son's heartbeat disappeared from my link"

The king slumped on the floor, visibly distressed. The guards hurriedly carried him away to his chamber.

The twenty nobles came into the throne room despite the objections of the guards.

"Where is the king!" They shouted in anger, they were disappointed at the king's handling of the war though they just wanted to gain more from the spoils.

"Silence!" The Grand Mage shouted back, a freezing spell froze the entire throne room, the nobles' feet were frozen as well. They were all frightened, the Grand Mage had never lost his temper before, something must have happened.

The confusion eventually died down, a few hours passed and the nobles were unfrozen and were discussing with the Grand Mage.

The death of another member of the royal family shook the nobles, the dynasty was about to end in the most gruesome way. Only the princess and the king remained.

The King lied on his bed, motionless but alive. He was attended by a few maids and guarded by the Great Warrior of Yuhin, Ignis. Ignis was the most skilled warrior in the kingdom and has served the dynasty for the rest of his life. He lived under the oath of Yuhin, to protect his and her majesties from any threats and to ensure the continuity of the dynasty.

The king's chamber was simple, a simple bed and simple furniture were the only things inside, the walls were simply painted white, no designs or other lavish features.

Ignis stood by his majesty's side, holding onto his royal sword. In his mind, he was praying to the Gods for the king's well-being.

The king reached and grabbed the Ignin's fur coat, tugging it. Ignis then faced his highness, looking directly at the eyes of the king. They looked weak and frail, the king was getting too old to serve his position, he knew his death was nearing. The stress of losing relatives after relatives were finally enough to take down a once mighty person that Ignis knew.

"Ignis.." The King whispered, his voice was trembling and weak, the warrior could barely hear him. Ignis leaned and pointed his right here towards the king's mouth.

"Call the princess.. for me"

"Yes, sire!" Ignis rushed out of the room and called for a maid to bring the princess at once. Ignis returned to the side of his majesty and stood upright.

"You know.. I've never thought the dynasty would end this way"

Ignis nodded.

"They think I don't know, the twenty nobles have been gaining power lately.. they seek to take the throne.. with the princes' death and my death, the princess will be alone"

"Nonsense, my lord, I am here, I will ensure that the dynasty won't fall to these bigots"

The king smiled and turned to look at the closed window, there was a storm brewing outside.

"Promise me, once the princess ascends, kill the nobles and make sure she is safe"

The Great Warrior could only nod in agreement.

-

A lone guard knocked on the door leading to the chamber of the king. Ignis drew his sword and opened it, the guard was bringing a message.

"Sire! A messenger arrived a few minutes ago, he said that the Fortress City near the Freetan Border has been invaded and the invaders were likely the ones who took the prince's life" He announced as he bowed.

"Outrageous! did the Freetan Army attack?!" Ignis remarked.

"I believe not sire, the messenger cited that the invaders were unlike anything they've ever seen before, the few people who managed to escape described the invaders as men of metal"

Ignis was surprised, he had never heard such a beast existed despite encountering beasts of stone and soil. And these beasts looked like men!

"The garrison and the mage were said to have been completely annihilated, magic had no effect on them"

The king was asleep, he didn't hear anything the messenger has said. The Great Warrior sighed.

"Tell General Corbyn to mobilize his men, tell all the other nobles to join in to retake the city"

"Yes, sire"

The guard turned and left, Ignis then closed the door and took a deep breath.

"Why is everything happening quickly, this dynasty is as good as dead if I don't keep up the pace," He thought to himself, was it really a good move to hastily call on a counterattack? The Great Warrior knew he was risking the lives of thousands of men.

An idea suddenly crossed his mind. An idea to safely remove the nobles and solidify the princess' future reign but the idea was based on the assumption that the invaders were far superior, given they overran the Fortress City which was built to withstand heavy sieges. The fact that they were easily overwhelmed in a matter of minutes was a frightening thought that even the warrior couldn't bare to imagine.

Men of metal who were impervious to magic, such a being never appeared before in the continent, now thousands of them were pouring in day by day. The Machine Network was about to make itself known.