Amelia and Ophelia: The Former Grand Duchess and Saintess.

On a foggy snowy morning, Sir Matthews emerged from his tent, his boots crunching against the freshly laid snow, his breath was visible in the cold as he let out a sigh after taking in a deep breath. His black mask did well covering the upper portion of his face and as he got his bearings, the sounds of the camp coming to life filled the air. Signatari Soldiers were busy loading supplies and equipment onto large wooden carts being pulled by pairs of Dracorydes, large lizard-like monsters that are easily domesticated and serve as great mounts that can pull large loads without trouble. For each cart that had supplies was another cart that had a large crossbow launcher nailed onto the cart to serve as Anti-Dragon protection although a lot of the Signatari soldiers manning the launchers were skeptical at how these things could bring down the Twin-Headed dragon that ravaged the dukedom months prior. 

"Your Grace! The army is almost ready to head out" Commander Sullivan reported as he exited the command tent and walked over to Sir Matthews, his white robes with amber lining blending perfectly with the freshly laid snow 

"Is it now? I do hope that once we begin the expedition, we best not to follow the example of Grand Captain Michelle" Matthews replied as he glanced down at Sullivan who was slightly shorter than him 

"I hope so too Your Grace, his loss was a true tragedy" Sullivan lied through his teeth as he kept his gaze towards Matthews who was looking down at him 

"Truly, now. Let's head into the command tent, I have some words I wish to say to the commanders before we embark" Sir Matthews said as he began walking towards the command tent with Sullivan following behind him, their boots crunching on the ground as they made their way forward

Inside the tent, there were several men dressed in the same black-colored robes with chainmail underneath their plates. Each of them stood at around 6ft (182 cm) with each of them wearing the same amber mask which hid away their appearances. These were the Black Knights of House Baro and they were handpicked by Sir Matthews himself to lead the formations of the army when the northward expansion began. All of them formed a semi-circle around the large circular table before them that had maps and small figures depicting the soldiers and armies of the Dukedom, with several small black houses depicting clan villages they had mapped out years prior and were common knowledge to them. They all straightened up when Sir Matthews entered the tent, their eyes all staring at him who was slightly taller than all of them. 

"Good to see all of you are gathered here already" He said with a small smile visible on his face 

"Of course Your Grace, we, your loyal Black Knights shall serve you faithfully" One of the commanders replied with a nod, his sultry voice filling the air of the tent 

"Thank you Gerhart. Now, on to business" Sir Matthews added as he moved and gestured towards the table 

"We will be marching northward as one single force, with the bulk of our army concentrated there is nothing that those savages can do to stop us. We will be like an unstoppable tidal wave of steel and fury that will lay waste to anyone who dares stand in our way" He added as he pointed at the route on the map 

"But Your Grace, we will be too exposed in such a formation, how will we stop the enemy if they ambush us from all sides or just run?" One knight named Torben asked with understandable concern 

"I understand your concern Torben, that is why the 25,000 cavalry of the army will provide a curricular screen while the main bulk marches onward. You and the cavalry will be our eyes and ears and alert us of anything. I bet you lot can even run down the fleeing savages once all is said and done, so do not worry" Sir Matthews answered him 

"I see Your Grace, forgive me for my question" Torben replied

"No apology needed. Anyways, once we secure the closest clan village we will use it as a staging ground that will then help us leapfrog from village to village. With that in mind, the closest clan village to our own border is the one close to the Barrah Plains" Sir Matthews added 

"Your Grace, I get the plan, but why are we not attacking the closest one a few hours from here?" Another Black Knight by the name of Orus asked 

"Because there is a dungeon there that has already claimed the lives of 5,000 Signatari Soldiers and I do not want to risk losing more in an attempt to clear it" 

"Is that the best course of action sir?" A Black Knight by the name of Robin raised as he looked at him 

"By all accounts yes, unless you have an entirely different plan that I am all ears for Robin" The Baron-to-be replied, Robin simply shook his head and Matthews continued on 

"Right, with all of that out of the way. I must make clear one thing. We have a set of orders from the Duke himself and those are pertaining to the full extermination of the twin-headed dragon that ravaged the nation a few months back. Those orders are primary and supersede all if we are ever to come across it. Meaning if we are to ever spot it, we are going to abandon the chase and kill it, although some of you may argue that it is stupidity, those are the standing orders. I too actually want to bag that beast more so than catching some meager slaves, so there it is, go back to your units and get ready to leave within the next two hours" 

The Black Knights nodded at his words and after a few more minutes of final checks, they were dismissed by their commander, moving towards their units to finish the preparations and preparing themselves mentally for the challenge ahead. 

After two hours had passed, the entire camp was packed up and the columns of soldiers stood at the ready while the groups of cavalry were also raring to go, the large baggage train was ready to follow along, packed with food, medical supplies, ammunition for the crossbow launchers and bows, including magi-stones for creating fires and replenishing magical energy of the mages of the army. All in all, it was safe to say the 275,000 Signatari Soldiers of the Dukedom's Army were ready to embark and begin their great campaign of conquest. 

Atop his white stead at the head of the column next to the main gate leading out of the Dukedom, Sir Matthews looked like a hero to his soldiers and the small band of civilians that had arrived to wish them off, many of them waving handkerchiefs and hiding their expressions behind the masks that adorned their faces. Sir Matthews in particular so many ladies waving away at him, throwing their handkerchiefs adorned with rose petals on them towards him which was a dukedom tradition of giving away their love and blessings and prayers to him specifically. Other women in the crowd along with their children also presented the same thing to their loved ones before returning back to a safe distance as ordered. 

As Sir Matthews surveyed the crowd, he saw his beloved Mako standing next to a carriage, she had removed her mask and exposed her beautiful face to the elements, winking and blowing him a kiss that made the man feel butterflies in his stomach, he nodded at her and she nodded in return before he turned away from the crowd. 

"Right, lead us out Sullivan" He ordered as he looked at the man atop a black stallion next to him

"Understood. Company! All Ahead! March!" He ordered as he and Sir Matthews began moving

The gates opened before them and as the snow continued to fall, the sound of the iron boots of the Signatari Soldiers filled the air with their precise and unyielding march forward as they followed Sir Matthews and Commander Sullivan out of the gates. Following behind the columns of soldiers marching were the groups of cavalry, the horses trotting along and crushing the snow that was already trampled on by the soldiers before them. Right behind the cavalry was the massive baggage train of carriages laden with everything the army needed for the expedition, from food and medical supplies to replacements for weapons and armor, this entire thing was too precious to lose and thus necessitated the wagons armed with massive crossbow launchers bolted onto them. 

"No going back now" Sir Matthews muttered under his breath as he held up a handkerchief made by Mako, kissing it before tucking it into his armor 

.........................................................................................................................................................................................................................................

Flying high above the central region of the continent, Spithe was enjoying their time while their masters were resting on either head, holding onto special scales the twin-headed Divine Beast had made specifically for them to hold onto. The Divine Beast had been informed about the plan forwarded by Marshal Belle and to say that Spithe was excited was an understatement. 

"Ooo, this is going to be fun" 

"Indeed! This is a first for even us" Spithe said as both heads smiled with anticipation 

"Glad you are feeling great about it, I feel like we have underused you for so long" Amelia said as she stroked the dragon 

"Thank you for your concern Master Amelia" 

"But rest assured, we are quite happy with the arrangement so far. Having the empire be reliant on us would have spelled disaster, so underusing us was a good choice to get the empire's self-sufficiency up" The Divine Beast replied with small smiles and gentle tones as they continued to fly southward 

"Thank you for understanding you big chicken. We appreciate it" Ophelia said as she stroked the head she was using as her mount 

"Master Ameliaa~" 

"Master Ophelia is calling us names again!" Spithe playfully complained as they banked slightly left and right 

"Ophie! You can't do that to such a gentle and kind creature" Amelia teased as she stroked one of Spithe's head

"Hahaha...if they keep running to you like that, I think I'll do something else to remind them of who became their master first" Ophelia replied with a smile that didn't reach her eyes as she tightened her grip on the mount, making the Divine Beast shiver slightly at the perceived threat 

"Ophie" The blonde empress shot back 

"Kidding, kidding. I wouldn't hurt them. I love them too much to do so" The raven-haired empress stated with a small chuckle and a shrug 

After a few hours of flying, they were nearing the target area for Spithe to make their presence known, a smile on the lips of both empresses as they looked at one another. 

"Alright Spithe, prepare a smile! We're going in" Ophelia stated 

""Time to hunt!"" 

A/N: A shorter chapter than usual, it will get longer as the battle begins! I hope you are all ready for a ride!"