"Gentleman. Ladies." Alfred looked down the table at the inner circle members who were present. A large map of the Commonwealth was spread along the table, and a few chess pieces were placed on it. The war was coming, and Alfred knew it. "Let us avoid all the formalities and get straight into it. William."

Turning to the old general, he crouched over the table. "By now, Marcus should have landed in the south with his small force. Whilst it is hardly anything, the rabble the Commonwealth can put together is nothing compared to our own, even if they tried to imitate us." Small dry chuckles echoed in the room as William placed a few pieces on the map.

"The Commonwealth is split into three main provinces, East, South and West. The East quickly fell under Henryk’s control, but the South became the main battleground. Snowid must win it before we arrive. He can easily replace the houses that have revolted, and whilst it may cause issues, it is far better than our occupation. They crossed the river, and the South didn’t have the manpower. Whilst many houses revolted, not everyone, some are neutral."

"Also, this will mean a resting place for Snowid if he reaches them." Charles cut in, getting a nod from William.

"Every inch we lose means there are fewer supplies Snowid has to waste. Hopefully, Marcus can hold the line until we are ready, but our main focus should be the South when we are. Henryk is a capable man, and I know many of us don’t trust him, but he is smart."

Everyone nodded, and Alfred looked at the map. "William, if you focus on the South and reinforce the South, Charles can mobilise the Unyeilding and reinforce Henryk."

"If I may," Catherine said as she stood up. "Why don’t we open a third front? Force Snowid to retreat." The woman grabbed a few extra pieces and placed them on the tears of Gaia as she pushed them into the West province. "We make a breach. Take a city and force them into a siege. Yes, it must be a port, but it is doable."

"It will delay the attack," William said but didn’t completely shut down the idea. "Your Majesty?" Looking at Alfred, he fell into thought.

"We will need constant shipments of supplies to make it worthwhile. It will drain what we already provide to the main force..." Tapping the desk, he tried to make the calculation in his head. "Find out afterwards how costly it will be and how long the delay is. Talk to Dimitri and see if Vladmire will be willing to help with the supply. I need an exact number if it will work."

"Of course." Catherine and William both nodded, and everyone looked back at the map. "What about foreign intervention?" WIlliam asked, causing Alfred to sigh.

"Snowid is concerned we mu..." Stopping mid-sentence, Alfre walked to one of the cupboards on the side and rummaged through it. Pulling out a large map, he spread it over a part of the table. "How big can this war get?"

"Your Majesty?" William asked in confusion.

"The Church will move when we do. If it’s money or a few soldiers, they will be forced to; The Commonwealth is just that important." Stopping again, Alfred walked out of the room. "Get Prince Ivan." Ordering a servant, he walked back in, getting confused looks.

"I thought you said Vladmire shouldn’t be involved," Charles said cautiously.

"Things have changed. Ivan is still here, and if I can convince him, then maybe we can do something unexpected." Only a minute passed before Ivan walked in. His smile was wide, but seeing the maps, it grew as he chuckled lightly.

"So it’s time." Taking a seat at the opposite end of the table, he leaned forward. "Why have you called?"

Alfred didn’t answer him straight away. "How big?" Asking William again, the old general fell into thought.

"Thinking rationally, Snowid will marry either the Gotics or Nogrovod. The Church will likely support him, how much I can’t predict."

Alfred turned to Ivan. "Me and you, Ivan. We both know so well what we want. If I gave you the chance to do it now, could you?"

Ivan’s smile grew even wider, and his laugh boomed. Looking at the map, he fiddled with one of his rings. "It’s a hard sell to my father."

"But could Vladmire do it?"

"We could invade Nogrovod, but if we win, that is another story. We won’t lose, but it could easily become a stalemate. Adding to this are the religious reforms we want, and it’s even harder."

"Forget the schism. That can wait. Is it possible?"

"Hardly." Ivan shrugged. "But we can put pressure on Nogrovod if we mobilise our forces and make it look like we will attack. Well, King Snowid’s call for support would hardly be a concern. The Commonwealth already looks like a bad investment for many. We take away Nogrovod, and it looks worse."

Alfred smiled when he heard that as he looked at the map. "If you fake an invading force, could you possibly send support to us? No soldiers; food."

"Of course. If you wish for nothing but food, it’s the least we could do." Alfred turned to Catherine and nodded, the woman understanding instantly what it meant.

"William, begin mobilisation. It’s time." Everyone stood up and bowed towards Alfred, except Ivan. Leaving the room, the Prince followed him.

"So it finally started, " he said happily, looking at the distant halls. Alfred turned to him and thought for a second.

"Follow me." Turning around, he led Ivan deeper into the Palace. Opening a door that looked out of place in the palace’s perfect symmetry, he found a room full of portraits.

"Do you know what this is?" Alfred asked casually as he went over to the curtains and opened them. The light was blinding, but the majesty of the room was finally fully unveiled. Alfred moved quickly and took his place in front of a painting next to his.

"Your father?" Ivan asked casually, looking up at it.

"Did you know? I told people I knew my father, but I didn’t. I have memories, but to say I knew him is a lie." Hearing his tone, Ivan could tell his words had a much deeper meaning.

"Strange. After all, he kept you locked up in the palace as a child."

"True. But it doesn’t mean I knew him." Alfred moved across. "Richard the Lucky, Hames the Young, Peter the Holy." Listing off the previous rulers with titles, Alfred stopped in front of one—a lanky man who towered. "Harold the Tall."

"A great man," Ivan said with genuine respect as he looked at him. "To carve a place in the world as a saviour, not a conqueror, is a hard thing to do."

Alfred nodded and moved to the couple down. "Edmund the Brilliant." Looking at the paying couple, the two saw his cold eyes that screamed of unwavering conviction. It was truly a work of art to be able to capture it in the painting alone, and it made them feel like Edmund stood in the room with them.

"The man who saved the Ammary people from destruction. A tyrant also, but a necassary one." Ivan said casually as he looked at the empty place next to Edmund. "But William the Unworthy. To not even hang your ancestor’s picture. Even if you tried, he couldn’t be buried."

Alfred nodded and looked at the painting surrounding him. Ivan sighed and faced him. "Why have you brought me here? If we wanted to show our families’ history, then forgive me, but my one is more glorious."

"I looked at all these people, and I realised something. Most did nothing." Alfred said in disbelief as he crouched down and leaned against the wall. Staring ahead of him was the painting of Owen the Pitiful. "A status quo. That’s all they left behind. You told me you wanted to restore your family’s prestige. Reclaim what your Grandfather has destroyed. I’m different, Ivan."

"Oh." Ivan faked his surprise.

"Don’t get me wrong. I do this for someone. Someone I owe everything. But a part of me that I tried so hard to deny broke through. I am the Empire Ivan. I will always be known as its founder. But I want more for me and him. I want a new age. A legacy that can never be buried."

"You have done that already," Ivan said seriously, taking a seat next to Alfred. "But you are lucky. You are young and don’t have the burden of being worse than your ancestors. Me. They watch. They judge."

"Ivan, we have been truthful to each other. I could even consider you a friend." Ivan’s laugh echoed in the room at his words, but he didn’t interrupt. "We can create this. Easily. The world has no idea what I know. If I wanted, I could completely reinvent it. But I won’t. Because I would end up making it a place reliant on me."

"You’re delusional," Ivan scoffed, but facing Alfred, he could see that everything he said he believed. Pushing himself up, he shook his head in disbelief. "You’re full of surprises. You know. When I chose to join your side, I decided with my gut. My gut said I have a better chance with you. Plus, it seemed fun." Returning to his unserious attitude, he let out a small laugh.

Alfred looked at him seriously. "You can’t have it. Not in your role."

"I don’t care," Ivan shot up. I will talk to my father. This was nice." Looking at the painting, his eyes lingered on the portrait of James the Founder. It wasn’t the real picture, having been lost.