An unfortunate event that happened just a few hours ago, to Maria and Helga were something that happened most of the time for someone poor like them. It did not faze them too much but It does scared them both, especially Maria, but she consider her trauma were much lesser than Helga that were hurt in the process. Sitting in the living room, gazing on the windows and illuminated by the moon light, Maria fell deep in thought.
“Miss Maria…what are you thinking about?…Is it about him?”. (Helga)
Helga rarely sees her missus, sitting alone in the dark and have a silent deep thought like this. But still rather than being worried about her, she sees that Maria were not actually in a depression but rather, all alone blushing to herself, while repeatedly folding the Aeternum Military Uniform on her lap.
“.…Yes…He stepped in a crucial moment…Strong yet well mannered…
When I were in the military, I had rarely involved in the after affects of a war, mostly all I do is become the medic, or just went into the battlefield and kill enemies and head back. But here, I had to take on that roles, some might think of it as difficult but me, It was just a bunch of paper works and details planning. Since I have already went around the entire city, I got the broad pictures of all the issues that I had to take care of, before Aeternum Army and the First World Alliance pull out from the Hallerusia City.“Major Gregg..how about the current state of the city…if the safety on par?..”.“It is sir…we have made a total of 5245 arrest of the Soldiers that were trying to interrupt the public safety..All of the cases were, breaking and entering, attempted robbery, rape, blackmailing and murder…there’s quite a number of it..but all the crimes that were coming from the Alliance Side wer
6thDivision Major Amanda were specially tasked by me, to secured a hidden path for all the Resource Department logistics to carefully and secretly smuggled out all of the Loot that has been collected by the Intelligence Squads and the Special Force Squads that were apart of the Operation Midnight Shadows. We knows that the Ministers were secretly stealing everything inside the palace, including draining the Palace treasury for their own benefits.With this information, I have made a mission for the Intelligence Squad to track down everything. And last night the operation is a go, which is ransacking those nobles hidden stash, be it coins or artefact, everything were haul. And the next phase was the chaotic war, in the midst of the War, 6thDivision were tasked to secure route and also bringing everything out, in the span of the entire war. That is why the Southern Wall fall first, despite the Northern Wall were already conquered
“I’m going to keep this simple and brief…after all, I know you all were tired…after all we’re just went through a war…”.“..Oh, Sir..please,you can take as long as you want…don’t mind us…we are not that tired…”. (5thDivision Major Gregg Chabot)All of them shows exactly the same expression, like the weren’t tired at all. But who are they going to lie, I know what it is after a war, even if you not physically exhausted, your mental will need rest. I just smile at their enthusiastic response.“...Anyway, let’s start with 5thDivision first…Just like what you have been doing, keep the peace within the city…I predicted starting from tomorrow..the city will return to their bustling self…so we need to make sure that the order will not lost…Keeping the order wil
“We aren’t the only one that have a thought..the others have them too…so be careful, from now on..reminded our troop too…even if we were dissatisfied with them.. we must not let it shows…Clear?..”.“Yes Sir..”.( All Majors)“Good…Now, as 5thDivision were handling the public safety…4th Division will process all the Prisoners…both the Enemy captives and also the criminals that were arrested…do not mixed both of this category….we also need to prepared another places to hold another prisoners…the criminal nobles…I have informed the Hallerus factions before that, they would have to executes the Nobles Criminals..”.The situations regarding the criminals and the surrender and capture enemies, need to be addressed. They have to be kept apart, as there might be a danger when all of them were placed tog
“As for the last one, is concerning our logistics…6th Division will take a full control of this…alongside all of our remaining troops..I don’t want to delay our departure from this place too much…so, with this…I want our Army to start boxing everything and started to send any resources back to Aeternum…”.It was of no use to stay here more than absolutely necessary, I have predicted that one week will be the time limit where Aeternum Army and also the First World Alliance Army to stay here in the city. Any longer, then issues will start to rise, given the situations, surely the First World Alliance including Aeternum can’t truly left for good. But at the very least the troops should be returned to their home country, to avoid both issue in the city and also a dissatisfaction from the Alliance Country, After all they were all here in borrowed terms.“I understand sir..then, I sh
With all the Major issues has been discussed and solved, we further discussed about the minor things. So in the end, the meeting went for a little while and by the time we finished everything it was already 12 in the midnight. Still Aeternum Camp were still active, and so is the City. As everyone started to leave, it was only me and Captain Linda were left in the Command tent.“Linda..how are those at the palace were doing?…did the Princess did anything like what happened at the Bridge again?..”.“...For those that were captured in the Audience Chamber…she didn’t do much but kept them alive and locked them in the dungeon…but to many that were captured in the dungeon by the previous rulers..she let everyone out….Thanks to, High General Bina, Princess Angela, Duchess Kolarova and Grand Magus Soo Kwan Hon…those that were released were being questioned and investigate of their background
It was already 1 in the morning, as I walked through the already subsided Hallerusia City. There were a few lights coming from the houses and tavern on the side of the streets, the drunkards are celebrating even to the outside of their taverns, walking happily to their homes or even dancing on the streets. I sink in the moment, seeing this foreign felling of the world of Medieval Fantasy. Which is something that I usually never got the chance to.“[ different isn’t it?…We never got the chance to see this side of the Fantasma, as you mostly just stuck in your office all the time….]”. (T.A.S)“...yeah…it’s just that one time when we become the mercenary that we got the chance to see the world….even then we only managed to go around Hallerus…..this world is big…”.“[Hmmm…..somehow I sense yearning in your tone, Master…..why not
The whole time as I inside Maria manor, everything seems to move fast, but at the same time were also so slow that I can feel the subtle changed in the atmosphere between me and Maria. And unknown connections between us and the chemistry that seems to be connecting us without we even speaks to each other. I am not a dense bloke that don’t know, where all this kindness would lead to, but I also didn’t like to take advantage of others unless I wanted too.“...old bath buckets…but very well taken care of…she even heated the water using the firewood, instead of Fire Magic Stones…”.I can see that Maria is not like any normal Noble lady. She was used to the poor and hardship, and according to her words, she were also an Eldest of her siblings, she was 32 years old this years. In Fantasma, at that age, one should already be a mother to dozens of kids. Yet she wasn’t even married, all due to
I took another sip of tea, letting the warmth spread through me.Because here’s the delicious irony: by copying our education system, they didn’t just adopt our books and schedules.They were adopting our mindset.Every child who learned using our curriculum. Every teacher trained by our methods. Every official who quoted Aeternum textbooks. They were all little seeds planted deep within foreign soil.In ten years?Those nations would think like us.In twenty?They would be like us. All without a single sword being drawn. I leaned back in my chair, utterly content.Without armies, without bloodshed, we were gaining soft political power over thirty-one nations.Real power.The kind that shaped futures. Mina clinked her cup lightly against mine in a silent toast, her green eyes sparkling.“To the future?” she teased.I smiled, lifting my cup.“To the future we’re writing,” I said.And out there, beneath the quiet, darkening sky, the seeds of a new world had already begun to bloom.The n
In New City, the public watched it all unfold on massive news screens and digital displays.A young woman in a coffee shop blinked back tears.“My mother couldn’t even sign her name,” she said. “Now, she’s going to school at sixty. Can you imagine?”A factory worker on break raised his can of iced tea. “They used to mock us for thinking machines would replace us. Now? My kid’s learning to design them.”Later that evening, President Mies stood at his office window in the Black House, overlooking a city glowing with lights and ambition.Minister Myers entered, holding the finalized signed charter.“It’s done,” he said quietly. “They all agreed. The future begins today.”Mies nodded. “We’ve unified their borders, their defense, and their markets,” he said. “Now, we unify their minds.”A long silence followed. Then, just a single line: “History will remember this moment.” And across the continent, it already had.The evening air was soft, almost languid, as I sat back in my chair, savorin
As the documents were sealed, cameras flashed and live broadcasts streamed the images of rulers shaking hands with President Mies—smiles genuine, eyes alight with purpose.The message to the world was unmistakable:Aeternum does not just lead with power—it leads with knowledge.Later, in a private conversation, Jonathan Myers turned to Mies.“This is more than we hoped.”Mies looked out the window of his office, where the UNA flags fluttered in a perfect row.“No,” he said. “This is exactly what I planned.”Jonathan raised a brow. “And what next?”Mies smiled faintly. “We teach the world… to think like us.”The central assembly hall of New Concordia UNA Headquarters—a gleaming white dome adorned with banners of thirty-one nations—had never been so full.Delegates filled every seat. National flags stood in perfect rows. The giant LED display behind the stage glowed with the symbol of the United Nation Alliance, now framed by a new banner in golden letters:"Education for All – A Future
Outside the palace gates, the citizens of Hallerus City buzzed with excitement. News traveled fast: another king had come, and he, too, had seen the truth.And far beyond the city walls, whispers began in other UNA courts:“Perhaps we should ask Queen Helen for assistance.”“Maybe Aeternum’s model isn’t just for them.”“Could we build this future too?”In the Black House of New City, when President Mies received the report of King Leopold’s visit, he simply closed the folder and smiled slightly."One seed sows a thousand trees," he murmured.And in the fields of Fantasma, the seeds of knowledge had already begun to sprout.The towering skyline of New City shimmered beneath a clear morning sky. It was a perfect day for diplomacy—and a historic one.Within the great glass-paneled east wing of the Black House, Aeternum’s political nerve center, a long oval table had been prepared. Security was tight, the air dignified, yet the atmosphere was distinctly welcoming. For today, President Mie
That evening, Queen Helen hosted a quiet reception for the UNA visitors. Modest food, strong Hallerian tea, and conversation flowed freely.“We’re not pretending it’s perfect,” Helen told them. “But we’re not pretending it’s impossible, either.”One observer raised a hand, smiling. “Would you be open to helping other nations start similar programs?”Helen looked to Merrica, then back to them.“Of course,” she said. “We’ve taken help. It would be wrong not to offer it.”It was the kind of answer that made diplomats take notes. And so, Hallerus—once a fractured kingdom cast in shadow—began to shine in a new light. Not as a symbol of power. But as a model of transformation. And as the scholars walked the streets of Hallerus City, alongside teachers and curious children, they quietly realized: The future wasn’t just being forged in Aeternum anymore. It was spreading.The scent of blooming gardenias filled the royal courtyard of Hallerus Royal Palace. The sun hung high above the battlement
“It’s… beautiful,” she said.Jonathan smiled. “It’s sure is,.”The first major step was the immediate conversion of six major city libraries into public education centers. Then came the pilot schools—one for each major region of the kingdom. Each staffed with a blend of local teachers (newly trained) and educational experts from Aeternum who came to oversee implementation.Within a month, Hallerus Elementary Schools opened their doors for the first time. Children from farming villages and mining towns, who had never once held a book of their own, were now reading stories about space, science, and society. They learned arithmetic on digital chalkboards and watched recorded lectures from Aeternum instructors. Classrooms were modest, but organized. Desks were salvaged, but steady.The change was jarring. But it was real. Queen Helen visited one of these pilot schools in the outskirts of Archenport. There, she saw barefoot children reciting alphabet lines. She watched a young girl raise h
Outside in the streets of New City, a mural was already being painted on the wall of a youth center—depicting two children, one Aeternian and one Hallerian, sitting together at a shared desk beneath the words:"Wisdom Unites What War Divides."The mural was uncommission—but no one was taking it down. From within the homes, classrooms, and council chambers of Aeternum, the message was clear: the world was learning, and they were learning from Aeternum.And that made the people walk taller.Because every road rebuilt in Hallerus, every classroom opened, every young mind taught in their system—was a quiet victory for Aeternum’s vision. The age of empires was ending. The age of influence had begun.The great hall of Hallerus Royal Palace hadn’t hosted a summit like this in over a generation. Not for war. Not for taxation. But for education.Long tables stretched beneath arched stone windows, newly adorned with fresh flags representing each province of the Hallerus Kingdom. The air smelled
Contracts were awarded to the newly established Hallerus Road Commission, overseen by both local talent and advisory engineers from Aeternum. Bright orange marker flags began appearing all over the kingdom, outlining future road paths. Caravans brought in equipment, gravel, construction tools—and, notably, several transport trucks from Aeternum carrying the first batch of reinforced roadstone, a durable blend sourced from the Stone Ring mountains.Helen personally visited the first construction site just outside the capital—a winding, broken stretch leading to a key trade town in the east.She knelt beside the workers, running her fingers through the packed dirt and gravel. “This path,” she said to a nearby foreman, “will be the spine of our kingdom.”He blinked, surprised at her presence, then bowed. “Then we’ll make sure it’s strong, Your Majesty.”As roadwork began, the kingdom watched. Villages previously isolated by floods or rough terrain saw the first signs of inclusion. Mercha
The project would take time—perhaps years—but its impact would begin in weeks.“Once the roads are in place,” Merrica said, entering her chamber with a report in hand, “we’ll be able to move goods faster, respond to crises quicker, and prepare for the second phase: economic zone development.”Helen took the report with a tired, but satisfied smile. “This… this they will see. This they will believe.”“And when they do,” Merrica said, “they’ll follow.”Late that night, as the wind howled against the palace windows, Helen stood in her private study, gazing out at the flickering torches lining the city streets. In her hand was a smooth, curved stone from the first road pile—just a plain stone, but to her, it was the beginning of a foundation.Her fingers closed around it as she whispered to herself, “Let this road lead us to a better kingdom.” And with that, the first steps into a new Hallerus had begun.The throne room had seen war plans, council betrayals, and royal declarations. But on