Iron Harvest: When Farming Becomes Conquest

The Conqueror Order has been recognized by all the nobles for over a century.

The reason is that while the King is the highest ruler, he does not possess absolute power.

Every Black Iron King faced multiple constraints.

The Black Iron King's authority is under the Order and also under the religious authority.

If a king wants to execute a noble, he must go through procedures such as a royal trial, legal judgment, and accusation of crimes; he cannot execute a noble at will.

The King is more a noble standing at the pinnacle of the pyramid than a king.

When the Black Iron King calls upon all nobles' arms in the name of a conqueror, he can form a formidable force to rival the Church Court.

This is a traditional political maneuver.

The King mediates the conflicts of the great nobles internally and balances the pressure from the Church Court externally.

The Inner Court officials initially pledged loyalty to the White Steel Princess because she was wise and brave, capable of making Black Iron great again and reviving the Central Kingdom, like the conqueror a century ago, turning the tide and reshaping the land's order.

And they would become the initial followers, winning honor and gaining fiefdoms.

Things went as smoothly as ever.

The ministers supported Tashina, who joined forces with the River Valley King to seize the Lion Territory—though akin to seeking skin from the tiger, it was still a great victory.

Tashina ascended to the throne smoothly.

Thereafter, they should take the Lion Territory as a starting point, and proceed to all parts of the land, using interests and bloodline as bonds, connecting surrounding nobles with force or rhetoric, pulling in some, fighting others, making more friends and fewer enemies, showcasing their value in the upcoming turmoil.

That's what the ministers thought.

This development was only natural.

It should have been that smooth.

So smooth that such a future was within reach, yet vanished like an illusory dream!

The new Queen was decisively different from the conqueror a century ago!

She opposed both the Church Court and the nobles!

Without any accusations, this Queen personally slaughtered those noble vassals, her methods were brutal and startling.

And this is what she learned from Roman.

With domineering dictatorship, all beings will bow to her ruling will!

...

"My King, have you truly resolved to do this?" Damian's throat was bitter, the smell of blood lingered in his nostrils.

Tashina, across the council table, saw the deep sorrow on this man's face.

It was the first time she saw such genuine emotion from this seemingly amiable minister.

Just as when Damian first saw the resilient girl standing on the open ground like white stone.

She was not good with words, had amazing drive, at a young age had eyes with startling sharpness, her expression always indifferent as if she never understood any joy or laughter.

At that time he began to believe what Iolion said, that this was the child personally given to the Black Iron Royal Family by the Conqueror Iaos.

Time flies, white horses pass by.

Their moods were utterly different from back then.

Your Majesty, no, I beg you. Damian pleaded in his heart, he was a senior minister clad in silks, wearing ten different functional gemstones on his ten fingers.

He was over fifty, accustomed to the weight of gemstones, repeatedly twisting the Cat's Eye Stone on his finger, yet without using its Gemstone Power, not wishing to use it to glimpse Tashina's determination, not wanting to face that cruel reality, even though it was already bloodily displayed before him.

Tashina had no scruples, she said, "I will not tolerate any opposing voices!"

This statement wounded Damian's heart; for a moment, his expression neared despair, his plump round face turned gray and pale, ultimately closing his eyes in pain, holding his breath.

Tana, my Queen, how could you do this, do you not realize my loyalty, how much I've cared for you?

Both Iolion and I saw you as a gem!

I defected from the Black Castle, abandoning all the favorable conditions offered by the Duke of Fury, just to have you one day, openly and honestly return to the Black Castle, letting the world understand that you are the true monarch.

How have you become like this?

Damian's mind was full of pain, the gemstones on his fingers trembled, "The Lion Territory is your kingdom; a qualified king must govern their own kingdom, never borrow others' hands!"

Tashina earnestly warned him, "Damian, times are different now, don't vainly try to stop me."

I understand, I understand... But, my Tana, you don't understand, follow Lord Roman's path, in the end, you can never match him!

If you insist on proceeding, what will he do to you then? Will you lower your proud head? The land of the Lion Territory filled with heads is your end!

Damian so wished the girl before him could understand this truth.

But she wouldn't listen, he knew her nature well.

Damian's heart turned to ash.

"Your Majesty Tana, I must refuse." His face tightened, "I aim to govern the land of the Black Iron King. Even if you oppose, I will propose that Lord Roman's men leave this place, ensuring that the people here only know of you as the ruler."

Tashina's expression finally shifted, "Damian, you didn't need to do this."

"Yes, I didn't need to do this." The minister who once held financial power in the Black Castle said, "I aided the Black Iron King for half my life, and before that Black Iron King went to the battlefield, he commanded me to assist you, to help Iaos' son save the land, to reinstate the collapsing Conqueror Order..."

Tashina gazed at Damian, "If you are loyal, you should unconditionally obey me."

"But I am also loyal to the Black Iron Royal Family!" Damian felt like a child seeing the end of the world, despairingly and sorrowfully accused, "Even if it exists in name only!"

Tashina was silent for a moment and then said, "...You can leave, leave here, follow the ones who fled."

"Where to? You want me to pledge allegiance to your brother? That Fake King? The Black Castle is no longer the Black Iron King's Black Castle; the shadow on the throne is but a puppet. And you...my Queen, you are the same..." The minister sarcastically remarked.

Tashina remained still, she still had feelings for Damian. He was the minister appointed by her father as her guardian, skilled and capable, acting faithfully and responsibly all along.

"Your Majesty, do you really intend to devote your life to this path, and since I am what you consider the remnant of an old era, why not be decisive?" The minister smiled amidst the blood.

Tashina could see the heart-deadness behind the smile of this person in front of her, a disillusionment, hopes and ideals turning into an illusory mirage.

She didn't understand at the time, but suddenly understood during a certain moment when she led the White Knights to attack the Black Castle later on.

That was the heart-deadness of the last loyalists of the century-long Yiao Dynasty, the most mighty and wealthy Central Kingdom disintegrated in mere years—when no one in the force cherishes in their heart, attempting to salvage at that moment; it was entirely buried in the rolling history, never to return. Ironically, the final handful of soil burying the vast kingdom was not the son of Iaos, but a seemingly round and cunning Finance Minister.

Perhaps due to the bloodline, she felt a hint of poignancy and loss in her heart, but quickly returned to rationality, resembling a cold, ruthless yet noble beautiful marble sculpture.

She believed that the Conqueror Order could no longer cope with future crises.

An unprecedented shadow tide swept through the Netherworld, what this land faced now was a crisis far harsher and more severe than a century ago.

She turned and left the blood-red council chamber with her sword after a moment.

...