Ominous Signs Of War

Ian had decided not to use mental manipulation on those close to him. He intended to use it strictly on those who could be exploited for his benefit. In fact, that seemed the healthiest way to manage relationships.

‘Using this kind of ability on everyone around me… it would only dry up my emotions.’

It was fortunate he couldn’t hear people’s thoughts. If he believed someone was trustworthy but discovered they secretly thought otherwise, he doubted he could keep anyone close. Especially if it were Armin—that would be a serious emotional blow.

‘So this is why the psychics I met in my past life were always emotionally detached?’

To avoid ending up that way himself, he knew he had to maintain strong mental discipline. Thankfully, his previous life had trained his mind well, and he had built up a solid mental barrier to protect himself.

In any case, he planned to use mental manipulation only on those unrelated to him and only when necessary. With that in mind, Ian began his second year at Rodliss High School. Just like the previous year, school life continued uneventfully.

He wasn’t particularly interested in academics, so he only studied enough to maintain average grades. As a prince, no one dared to interfere with him, and his daily life remained calm and uneventful.

He resumed his training at the sea, practicing his psychokinetic control over the water. In a way, it was an opportunity to refine his powers even more than in his past life. He steadily honed his skills during these quiet days.

Meanwhile, while Ian enjoyed this peace, the world was heading toward a dangerous tipping point. The Doicheun Empire, which controlled the vast southwestern part of the continent, had always been aggressive in expanding its territory.

Naturally, the Noma Empire to the north and the Moria Empire in the center had often opposed this, even resorting to full-scale wars to stop Doicheun’s ambitions. And then there was the Leman Federation—a coalition formed by three small kingdoms to protect themselves.

However, the Federation was landlocked and located at a strategic hub between the central and northern continents, which meant it was constantly under threat. In fact, decades earlier, it had suffered immense damage when it became the battleground for imperial power struggles.

To survive, the Federation had always played diplomatic tug-of-war with the empires, and it continued to do so. But now, Doicheun’s growing military movements were pushing it to the edge.

“Doicheun Empire deploys 60,000 troops near Leman Federation border—are we on the brink of war?”

“Doicheun’s unending ambition: Are they trying to drag the continent into war again?”

“Noma Empire expresses concern, sends 50,000 troops to its border; Moria Empire to dispatch 80,000 as well.”

“As tension builds, even the eastern giant Magnia Empire starts mobilizing troops!”

The atmosphere on the continent, dominated by major powers, had grown increasingly tense. In such times, the Polia Kingdom had only one viable option—remain neutral. Any movement on its part could disrupt the fragile balance between the four empires.

After the last war with the Nubea Kingdom, the kingdom had also realized that warfare had fundamentally changed. One key lesson was the effectiveness of machine guns. While it had always been known that they were deadly, their mass lethality on the battlefield shocked everyone.

Thus, Polia began producing its own machine guns in larger numbers. More guns meant more enemy soldiers could be eliminated—and better defense for themselves. The previous war had made that clear.

Around this time, the Leman Federation approached Polia. Though their visit during such a sensitive period could provoke Doicheun, their proposal was too enticing to ignore.

They wanted to purchase a large quantity of weapons. Fearing another war like the one decades ago—and shocked by the effectiveness of Polia’s machine guns—they were willing to buy them at several times the normal price.

The Leman Federation was surprisingly wealthy. Situated at a key trade route, its economy had grown steadily. They were more than capable of paying Polia handsomely for its weapons.

The Polian king and his ministers concluded that selling weapons was a matter of trade, not military involvement. Thus, they agreed to the deal, exporting the guns and rifles already in stock.

Naturally, the Federation also bought huge quantities of ammunition. Shipping such arms to a landlocked country would normally be difficult, but surprisingly, the Moria Empire opened a route through its territory to facilitate the transfer.

Thanks to this, the Polia Kingdom made a tidy profit. But the trouble came when the Doicheun Empire responded. The ambassador from their embassy in Plea, the capital, came storming into the royal palace in protest.

Polia Kingdom, Royal Audience Chamber

At that moment, the audience chamber rang with loud voices. The Doicheun Empire’s ambassador was shouting at the king, furious about Polia’s recent sale of weapons to the Leman Federation.

“How could you sell weapons to the Leman Federation? This is a grave diplomatic provocation!”
“Ahem. We simply conducted normal arms trade between two sovereign nations.”

“You expect me to believe that!?”

“What’s so unbelievable? We’re not a vassal state of the empire. We have the right to sell our weapons. Or is the Doicheun Empire planning to wage war against the Leman Federation again?”

The king’s rebuttal stunned the ambassador momentarily. But the man quickly composed himself and narrowed his eyes.

“That’s not for your kingdom to judge. Please refrain from interfering in internal matters.”

“And that applies to us as well. If you’re going to complain about what we sell, how can any country trade freely? Are we supposed to ask permission before doing business?”

“Is that truly how you think?”

“Have I said anything wrong?”

The king showed no sign of backing down. Perhaps emboldened by his victory in the war against the Nubea Kingdom, he seemed to believe Polia could stand up even to an empire.

Last time, all four empires had pressured him into retreating. But now, with just one—Doicheun—he felt confident. Especially since both the Noma and Moria Empires were clearly displeased by Doicheun’s territorial ambitions.

‘As long as the other empires stay neutral, we can afford to push back.’

Surely war with Doicheun wouldn’t break out. From their perspective, already watching the north and center, it would be a logistical nightmare to go to war with an island nation like Polia across the sea.

Still, watching all this unfold, the royal ministers couldn’t help but worry. Was it really wise to provoke Doicheun like this? The difference in power between them and an empire was simply too great.

Even with Polia’s massive island and colonial holdings, it was still dwarfed by the empires. Their populations and military might were on an entirely different scale.

If one were to evaluate it coldly, there was a significant gap in both fleet size and military manpower.

‘Shouldn’t someone have stopped him?’

Duke Gwens couldn’t help but think he should’ve intervened in the king’s actions beforehand. But during the prior council, the king’s stance had been unyieldingly hardline. With royal authority growing increasingly stronger in recent years, no one dared to oppose him, and the other ministers were too busy flattering the king to offer resistance.

‘If the Doicheun Empire has any sense, they won’t go to war with our kingdom so easily.’

But Duke Gwens had yet to realize just how mistaken that assumption was. By provoking the Doicheun Empire before the conflict even began, rather than remaining passive and gaining favor, they had guaranteed retaliation.

Indeed, the Doicheun Empire’s planned invasion of the Leman Federation was now on hold, and its military focus was shifting toward the Polia Kingdom. While the difference in international standing between the two was stark, even for an empire, taking on the Federation was diplomatically tricky.

But Polia was an independent kingdom, not entangled in other empires’ alliances, making it a more convenient target for war. Add to that the fact that Doicheun had seen decades of rapid growth.

With nearly ten years of bountiful harvests, a booming population, and technological and military advancement, the empire had reached the point of explosive growth. With bitter memories of past defeats at the hands of the other empires, a war they could win seemed necessary—perhaps even inevitable.

Polia’s interference offered the perfect excuse. A condemnatory statement targeting the kingdom was immediately issued. At the same time, their naval forces began gathering in southern port cities.

Sensing these alarming developments, the Polia Kingdom finally began to grasp that something was going very wrong.

Though displeased, the king of Polia still believed that war would not come. He summoned the Doicheun ambassador again in hopes of smoothing things over. But the ambassador, now emboldened, acted with blatant provocation—going so far as to accuse Polia of fueling war by selling weapons.

This insult pushed the king past his limit, and he yelled furiously at the ambassador. The shouting match that followed made it clear to the ministers present that relations had broken down completely—and that Doicheun was dead serious. Eventually, the ambassador was forcefully expelled from the palace.

In the aftermath, the king hurriedly summoned the ambassadors of the Moria and Noma Empires, hoping they would mediate the situation. But the ambassadors appeared reluctant and replied that they had yet to receive any official directive from their governments.

There was something ominous in their refusal to get involved. In truth, unless the war impacted the Leman Federation directly, neither empire had much reason—or excuse—to intervene. And frankly, both empires likely saw Polia as a vague and unpredictable ally.

If the Doicheun Empire could take Polia out of the equation for them, they would not mind. From their passive responses, it was clear the situation had spiraled badly.

There hadn’t been an official declaration of war yet, but the continent was teetering on the brink. And with the new year, the calendar had turned to 1906 of the World Era.

Rodliss High School, Class 3-1

The atmosphere in the classroom was grim. With daily news suggesting that war with the Doicheun Empire was imminent, everyone sensed the gravity of the situation.

“I think there really will be a war.”

“Do you?”

“Prince Ian, aren’t you being too carefree about this? We’re talking about a war with an empire. No one knows what’ll happen next.”

Maybe it was because they were older now, but unlike when they were younger and saw war through a romantic lens, now at sixteen, they were beginning to understand its harsh realities. After reading books about past wars in the library, their perspective had clearly changed.

“Even if it happens, it’ll mostly be a naval war. There’s not much we can do about that.”

“That’s true, but still…”

“Come on, you think they’ll send a bunch of sixteen-year-olds to the battlefield? The outcome will be decided by our existing military forces.”

“You’re right. Unless it’s an emergency, they wouldn’t send students to the front lines.”

“Exactly.”

Ian recalled seeing the capital’s fortifications being reinforced recently. If they lost at sea, a land war could become inevitable. The empire’s push to capture the capital would surely be intense. Still, for now, a land battle was unlikely.

‘I don’t like this. I should finalize an escape route before the year’s out.’

He was beginning to realize that things might escalate faster than expected. But since he had influence over the capital’s defense forces, it would be possible to build a covert escape route. He’d also need to start looking into ships for smuggling themselves out. One way or another, it was shaping up to be a very busy year.

‘Where would be safest? Somewhere untouched by the war, of course.’

As Ian pondered that question, he remained unaware of what was to come. His father—the king—was preparing to do something no rational monarch ever would: send the princes into battle.

Deluded by the kingdom’s overwhelming victory in the last war against the Nubea Kingdom, the king was convinced they couldn’t possibly lose against the Doicheun Empire.

He believed that sending princes to the front would inspire confidence in the people and demonstrate the royal family’s commitment to the war. But such a decision, especially now, would cause massive problems with military command.

None of the princes had any knowledge of naval warfare. Their pride alone would make them act recklessly. Of course, not all the princes were being called to arms—just those of appropriate age.

Unfortunately, Ian was right at the end of that age range.