THE SYSTEM IS NOT MINE

Golden Eagle City stood upright, its walls reaching toward the sky, and atop the walls, stone eagles were lined up.

Each eagle had a hollow head, and as the sun drew near the horizon, their eyes suddenly lit with fire.

The light spread across the surroundings, illuminating the entire wall, but it was brightest in their eyes.

“Those look scary,” Chen Yu commented, his legs trembling as the carriage approached the city.

Yan did not say anything.

For a moment, most of the group walked while looking at the eagles, and soon, they entered the city.

Even as dusk settled over the stone streets, the clang of iron echoed across the districts.

Forges burned like small suns inside workshops, and smoke drifted upward in thick grey columns.

Yan walked behind Han Defu’s carriage as it rolled deeper into the city.

Soldiers moved everywhere, armored patrols crossed intersections in disciplined formations, and messengers rode past at speed, carrying sealed scrolls toward the inner garrisons.

Supply wagons loaded with spears, shields, and bundled arrows rattled over the stone roads.

Golden Eagle City was no ordinary settlement.

It was a fortress built for war.

Eventually, the carriage slowed before a large military compound surrounded by high stone walls.

There was a giant gate between the walls, and guards stood beside it with long spears resting upright against their shoulders.

The column halted, and a cavalryman approached them from near the gate.

His armor was cleaner than that of most soldiers in the streets, and the polished plates reflected the fading evening light. The insignia of the royal army rested across his chest.

“Lord Han Defu, what took you so long?” the cavalryman asked.

“Luma,” Han Defu said.

Luma immediately came forward and placed his hand on a bag he was carrying on his horse, then, from inside the bag, he took out a head.

The cavalryman’s eyes widened as he looked at it.

“Indeed, there were infiltrators in the forest, and we took care of them,” Han Defu said.

The cavalryman stared at the head for a moment.

“Lord Han Defu, please come with me. The general would definitely like to see you,” the cavalryman immediately said, then turned around.

Han Defu and Luma followed behind him, leaving Yan and the others behind.

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Another cavalryman approached them, and his gaze moved quickly across the recruits.

“So you’re the new arrivals.”

Before anyone could reply, he gestured toward the interior.

“Follow me.”

Yan, Chen Yu, and the others obeyed.

Inside the garrison, the atmosphere was even more disciplined. Soldiers trained in organized lines across open courtyards, while officers walked between buildings, carrying scrolls and speaking with quiet urgency.

War preparations filled the compound.

The cavalryman led them toward a long stone building near the center, and voices could already be heard from inside.

He pushed the door open.

“Go in.”

The recruits entered.

The hall was large enough to hold several dozen soldiers, and rows of wooden benches faced the front, where a man stood beside a wide parchment map hanging against the wall.

The lecture was already underway.

Yan and the others quietly took empty places near the back, while at the front of the hall, the instructor tapped the map with a wooden rod.

“This,” he said, “is the Kingdom of Noir.”

The rod moved across the parchment.

“To the east lies the Kingdom of Shin.”

He tapped the eastern border.

“Our current enemy.”

Some soldiers shifted quietly on the benches and stared at the map of Shin.

Then the rod moved again.

“To the west lies the Kingdom of Choi.”

He tapped again.

“They remain neutral for now.”

The instructor paused briefly, then said, “But neutrality rarely lasts forever. They are waiting for a chance.”

The rod moved north.

“And here is the Kingdom of Mia.”

He held the rod there for a moment.

“Years ago, they infiltrated our capital and...” The instructor looked down and did not say anything.

But the audience clenched their fists, and some struck their thighs.

“They kidnapped the women of our kingdom and sold them as slaves, and this can never be forgiven!” he shouted.

The audience tightened their fists.

“But for now, they have remained quiet for a while, and they are not an immediate threat,” the instructor said as he calmed himself and continued.

Yan looked at Chen Yu, who was sitting beside him, and asked, “What was this about?”

“You don’t know?” Chen Yu said. “Fifty years ago, Mia’s troops infiltrated Noir’s capital disguised as traders, then they secretly captured young women and sold them. Not only that, but it is said that they also attacked the royal capital, causing severe civilian casualties.”

Yan nodded, and his eyes returned to the rod as it slid down toward the lower edge of the map, where the land ended.

“To the south lies the ocean.”

The instructor turned slightly toward the room.

“The coastline extends southeast from this region, and Golden Eagle City stands closer to that coast than most of you realize.”

The soldiers listened quietly, and war suddenly felt larger than the battlefield they had imagined.

The instructor lowered the rod slightly.

“For those of you newly arrived, understand this clearly.”

His gaze swept across the hall.

“This is not a border conflict.”

He tapped the eastern territory again.

“This is a full war.”

The room grew still, and dozens of soldiers sat silently on the benches.

The instructor continued.

“The eastern front is currently commanded by...”

Creak.

The sound of the door opening interrupted the instructor, and everyone’s attention shifted toward the doorway.

A woman stepped inside.

Her armor was dark steel, layered neatly across her frame, and the plates were polished but without ornament. A cloak bearing the royal insignia rested across her shoulders.

Two officers followed behind her.

For a moment, no one spoke, then the benches creaked.

One soldier stood, then another, and then another.

Within seconds, the entire room had risen to its feet.

No order had been given, and many soldiers seemed to realize only after standing that they had done so.

The instructor lowered his head slightly.

“General Hecta.”

The name moved quietly through the hall.

Yan remained seated for a brief moment longer and observed carefully, then he felt the change in momentum that had occurred when the door opened.

The air in the room felt heavier with her mere presence.

It was not due to cultivation, but something more primordial.

Authority.

Yan thought for a moment, then rose slowly with the rest, and his gaze moved toward the woman standing near the doorway.

She had not spoken yet, but the entire hall had already acknowledged her presence.

War, it seemed, had just entered the room.