It wasn’t until Richard saw Ayshan from afar that he realized his father was a true figure of importance.
Located on the Farview Peninsula, Ayshan had a population of over a hundred thousand. The city was built in the shape of the peninsula, with the highest terrain to the northwest, gradually curving southward toward the scattered islands of the Apennine Sea. The narrow, beast-like city seemed to rest peacefully between the water and sky, its houses orderly and streets well-planned. The towering twenty-meter walls curled around the city, protecting its residents. Outside the city, the vast plains were rich in fertile land, and the broad Lain River flowed through the heart of the city, emptying into the Apennine Sea, providing an inexhaustible water source for the far-reaching farmlands.
In the heart of Ayshan stood a small mountain, and at its peak, the famous Black Rose Fortress was built. It was a grand and imposing complex, capable of easily housing over three thousand soldiers. The towering turrets at every corner held large, permanent catapults, which overlooked the city below with disdainful vigilance. Yet, since the Black Rose Fortress was built, these catapults had never been used. Although enemies had reached the walls of Ayshan, their steps barely touched the city before being crushed.
The fortress was a masterful piece of defensive engineering. The fortress complex, with its inner fort at its core, boasted features such as shooting platforms extending from the city walls or arrow towers, tunnel-like gates that allowed passage, and five layers of sturdy gates set ten meters deep. There were many other unseen defenses. Upon completion, the Black Rose Fortress was reputed to be impregnable with just a thousand well-trained soldiers stationed there, as long as the supply lines were secure.
Many travelers with various intentions had visited the city, and when they saw the beast perched on the city’s highest point, they could not help but agree with the fortress designer's almost insane self-praise. An unnamed noble military strategist had once been invited to the fortress as a guest. After returning, he performed a war game based on what he had witnessed, concluding that even with an army of fifty thousand and heavy siege weapons, the cost to breach the fortress would be catastrophic.
But the fortress had never been truly tested by the flames of war, because the fortress’ previous owners had no interest in defense. Even when outnumbered, they preferred to use vast plains or deep mountains as battlegrounds, relying on mobile warfare to eliminate their enemies. And they always emerged victorious.
Even within the Holy Alliance, the madness of the Akmond family was well-known.
No one wanted to fight against a madman, and this mad family always produced one or even several geniuses at certain points in time. The Akmond family’s greatest enemy, Duke Joseph from the Lennon Peninsula, once remarked that when madness and genius combined, the resulting destruction multiplied, not just added.
When Duke Joseph said this, his twenty thousand strong force had just been defeated by Akmond’s ten thousand elite soldiers in a long and brutal battle, and less than two thousand of his men had managed to retreat. Joseph’s forces, the Iron Sons, were no weaklings and were considered one of the top military factions on the continent.
After hundreds of years of development, the Akmond family now boasted two dukes and seven earls, with numerous viscounts and barons—if not in abundance, at least not lacking—and controlled more than one hundred thousand square kilometers of land. While the Akmond family had a relatively short history in the Holy Alliance, their strength was undeniable, placing them among the most influential powers. However, it was curious that, with so many noble titles and so much territory, the family had yet to produce a duke, or even a grand duke, as would have been expected from any other family. After all, the Akmond family lacked neither strength nor capable individuals. They had powerful magicians, high-level warriors, and a variety of bizarre, powerful professions, such as dragon-blooded sorcerers, hell knights, shadow priests, and more. The continent of Norland was never peaceful, with wars constantly raging across it. The human race controlled less than half of the land, constantly fighting with various other races for survival space.
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Humans were perhaps as warlike as demons. They fought not only with other species but also among themselves. The raging fires of war did not just burn across Norland, but also spread to the depths of the oceans and to various other planes.
In such a chaotic and complex situation, it would not have been difficult for the Akmond family to produce a duke or even a grand duke. By concentrating their resources on expanding outward, taking land from other races, and establishing a firm grip on it, they could build a complete civil, economic, and judicial system, balancing the interests within the family. Within two generations, they would surely have a duke. At least half of the dukes in the Holy Alliance had risen this way. Therefore, to other noble families, the Holy Alliance Empire seemed like a haven for upstarts, with the emperor being the most notable of them all. But as with anything that reaches a certain point, a fundamental shift takes place, and the explosive rise of the Holy Alliance’s nobility surpassed the tolerance of most established noble families, earning them respect and admiration.
The Akmond family’s rise was no different. However, their short history left them lacking in both accumulated wealth and power. They had also been too reckless, preventing them from earning respect.
The current head of the Akmond family, Marquis Godon, was an example of this rise. Fifteen years ago, when he first began his military career, he was only a third-tier novice warrior. He quickly demonstrated his personal strength and political/military talents and ten years ago captured the Elven King’s court in the Evernight Forest, shaking the entire Holy Alliance! Many had dared to invade Elven lands, but only Godon had boldly entered the Evernight Forest with a mere fifty Constructed Knights and a thousand miscellaneous troops—and he succeeded!
Now, at the age of thirty-three, Godon had become a marquis and was living in the Black Rose Fortress, having received Ayshan as the territory specifically reserved for the Akmond family’s leader.
Among those who admired him, Godon’s story was considered legendary, and the legend was still being written. But Godon’s absolute influence, beyond the Black Rose Fortress, was only felt in the lands he personally conquered. The other members of the Akmond family barely acknowledged his orders. Within the family, the title of leader was more of an honorary title, of little significance without the fortress and Ayshan.
Heralds and historians specializing in the Akmond family’s lineage had concluded that the reason no duke had emerged from the family was due to the independence and rebellion that ran through their bloodline. Every Akmond refused to bow to anyone, even if that person was their own father.
This wasn’t a rigorous conclusion, and the scholar who made this statement was neither renowned nor particularly learned. In fact, if he hadn’t been able to gain funding from any noble family in the Akmond line, he would have been left to wander the streets. If he truly had the talent, he wouldn’t have chosen to study such an obscure family. Ultimately, the scholar’s fate was to die on the streets, impoverished and sick. It was said that when his research reached the Akmond patriarch, the patriarch flipped through it casually, then immediately banned any Akmond from providing him any form of support. Strangely, the traditionally rebellious Akmonds adhered to this command without question.
The real reason behind this was simple: though the scholar’s writing was filled with elegant phrases, full of flawed logic, absurd examples, and immature speculation, his conclusion was damnably correct.
The journey from Rutherland Village to Ayshan covered over three thousand kilometers, and it took less than half a month. Along the way, Mordred told Richard much about the Akmond family and introduced some of the customs and power dynamics across several continents. By the time they reached Ayshan, Richard already knew quite a bit about the family.
For Richard, "family" was a new concept. In the past, his understanding of his father had been vague at best, so how could he understand what a family truly meant? But judging by Mordred's attitude, this powerful knight seemed to place great importance on family. Here, the concept of family was much broader, including not only the direct and collateral bloodlines but also the lesser nobles and knights who followed the main family. All of them could be considered part of the family. Blood was the bond that tied the family together, but its meaning went beyond mere kinship. Many special bloodlines had unique abilities, and the combination of different bloodlines could often give rise to new powers. Some of these abilities were so powerful that people would go to any lengths to pursue them. As such, nobility and family took on a new meaning in Norland. Marriages were not just for political alliances; they were often to create powerful descendants.
When Richard stood before the gates of the Black Rose Fortress, he thought he already had a deep understanding of the Akmond family. Yet, the more he learned, the more confused he became. Mordred’s flood of information felt like a series of fragmented puzzles, each piece failing to form a complete picture.
