Amelia and Ophelia: The Former Grand Duchess and Saintess.

Sitting inside the main guild headquarters in Callipsburg, Guild Master Windel was looking through report after report submitted to him by his secretaries about the numerous dungeon raids and the gathering done by the adventurers of the empire. These past six months have been nothing short of tiring as the Adventurer's Guild was tasked by the Imperial Government to begin missions south of the border and begin interacting with the tribes there, so far there were 32 of them and by the reports he was reading, they were all pretty friendly and open about how they wished to integrate themselves, although those words were still up in the air to what they could mean based on his judgement. 

For each report he received and read that detailed the interactions, names, and locations of these tribes, he would make a copy of and compile them into a large report and send it off to those agents at H.I.S.S. in the capital for them to analyze and use to further their intelligence of the region as part of his job as Guild Master under this government. 

"Hmm, looks like the time is almost upon us" Windel remarked as he placed his pen down and filed away his report to H.I.S.S. in a container under his desk 

"Well, it is something that has been talked about ever since their announcement a few weeks ago Sir" A Lamia by the name of Mira Sense commented as she looked at him, she was his personal assistant through which all the other secretaries spoke to 

"I know I know, I am just saying that these events happen only once in someone's lifetime, if that lifetime was not akin to that of elves or demonkin, it's just that not every day does one hear or see life-changing governmental maneuvers. In fact, I only saw two things in my childhood back in Hillsbrooke, but they pale in comparison to this...a march to unite the whole continent...amazing" Windel added as he ran his fingers through his short grey hair 

"I know how you feel sir, sends shivers down my spine just remembering the announcement our monarchs made" Mira shivered slightly as she recalled that day the dual monarchs made their announcement to the whole of the empire 

"Indeed. But for now, we have more pressing matters at hand. What are the reports coming from our Adventurers near the 'Crossing'?" 

"It seems that they have encountered the larger clans on the fringes, and just as reported by other parties, these clans are more open to fighting, the slightest insult triggers them to go all in on a fight, even if said fight was over a bucket of water" Mira answered as she handed him a thick red folder 

"Fuckin hell. This is not going to be easy then, since we adventurers are going to be organized into something called the Adventurer's Corps and used as scouting and interaction parties ahead of the army, this will require more training for everyone if we want to keep ourselves safe" Windel said as he let out a small sigh before opening up the folder and looking at the papers inside 

"With the snowfall now that is predicted to continue until the third or second month of next year, this is going to be one hell of a march" The lamia secretary remarked as she smiled at the thought of moving through miles of snow which was a small guilty pleasure of hers  

"It will be Mira, it sure as hell will be" 

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South of the marking on the map deemed the Revenant Line, Agent Takawa and her escaped slaves have been walking for two or three weeks by now, using long routes instead of pushing straight forward as they were busy trying not to attract the attention of any tribes in the area and for the fact that they used to be 18 in total now they number 32 as they picked up several other slave groups who managed to flee but lost a lot of their own during the weeks of wandering. The snow had slowed them down during their trek northward, their clothes barely offering any sort of protection at all, something that was alleviated by Takawa using her magic to keep everyone warm, something that was taxing every day but she plowed through it to keep everyone alive. 

"Where is it...ah! There it is!" Takawa exclaimed with excitement as she saw a familiar snowy rocky outcrop in the middle of the dense snow-covered forest that led into a cave, 

She began making her way there with the slaves in tow and once they did, several other fully armed and armored warriors surrounded them, leaving all but Takawa scared of their presence due to their fierce-looking armor and unreadable expressions thanks to their helmets.

"Agent Takawa reporting in Section Leader! I have with me 31 slaves in need of food, clothing, and shelter" The kitsune agent stated as she straightened her stance and gave a salute 

"Takawa, you were supposed to report in a week ago!" An older man's voice came from the cave, revealing a grey-haired human wearing his armor and looking at her with a slightly annoyed expression 

"Hehehe, got sidetracked sir" Takawa replied weekly as she touched her fingers together 

"Clearly, but you should have double-timed!" The older man said as he walked up to her and bonked her head with his fist 

"OwWwW" Takawa groaned as she rubbed her head 

"sigh...At least you are here now, you have any intel for us?" The Section Chief named Marcus asked 

"Yes sir. Here, something that should give us an edge later on" The kitsune agent replied with a nod as she handed him several necklaces with a purple magic crystal as its centerpiece, these were recording crystals that Takawa would wear on her tail, underneath her magi-collar and hidden on her arm 

"Good, and by the way. This will be the last operation toward the Dukedom for a while, all efforts are going to be doubled in securing intel on the rest of the continent" 

{!}

"Really? Why?" The kitunse agent asked with a surprised expression 

"The march is to begin the first month of the next year, orders came in a week ago. You and these now-freed slaves will be sent back home and then you will take a small break before coming back down to help us out" Marcus told her with a straight face 

"I see, understood sir..when do I leave?" 

"Three days, we are still trying to get the teleportation crystal working, and once you get back there, our monarchs have asked for you to personally debrief them on the situation in the dukedom" 

{!} 

"I...I see...I understand sir" Takawa nodded, feeling a bit nervous about meeting the monarchs themselves 

"I hope you do, and chin up...I hear they ain't that bad....at least, that's what I hear" 

"I will keep that in mind sir....keep that in mind" Takawa replied as she trailed off and looked at the group of slaves being given food, proper clothing, and a fire to warm up beside

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On the southern border of the empire stood several forts on commanding positions that overlooked the dense forests and rolling plains and mountains that led into the empire, the largest of these forts was Fort Conquerer which was in the center of the line and was the largest of the forts, it was also the main command hub of entire Imperial Army on standby. Standing before a table showing the map of their forces inside the command room of Fort Conquerer, was the former Varangian Guard turned Imperial Army Marshal, Marshal Belle, Commander of the newly christened Imperial Army ever since Erhet handed over the position to her. No longer wearing the gleaming crimson plate armor of old, her pale skin complimented the crimson eyes and silver hair she was now rocking and she sported a black coat over her titanium chest plate that was over a grey blouse, her black combat slacks and black boots and gloves were comfortable but the former Varangian preferred her older plate armor. The outfit she was wearing now was part of a new prototype of armor that had been in development for the past six months by the Halkare Research Department and she was given one of the first shipments of this new "Hardened Fabric" type of armor which was supposedly as strong as the standard and magically enhanced plate armor worn by normal Black Guard forces but was apparently much more expensive to create. 

"If anything, it is comfy as hell," Belle remarked as she kept her gaze on the map before her 

Thanks to her involvement in campaigns for the Hillsbrooke Empire, Belle was much more qualified to be the commander of the Halkare Imperial Army than the lamia who held it before her, something both monarchs and said lamia understood. The Imperial Army comprises two branches, the Imperial Wyvern Corp, a newly established branch of the Army that trained soldiers to mount and control Wyverns, the wild and tamable cousins of the dragonkin race. The branch was founded six months ago and serves as the aerial arm of the Imperial Army, with each Wyvern being B-Class in power, giving the soldiers of the Empire reasonable air support. The branch also has a bunch of dragonkin soldiers within their ranks that fly as commanders or officers alongside the wyverns to assist the riders, with a typical 'Squadron' of Wyverns comprising a dozen of them plus eight dragonkin officers accompanying them. The Imperial Wyvern Corp was under the direct command of the current dragonkin chief, Chief Fafnir, who had volunteered her services to be the commander of the corp, something that Belle and the dual monarchs agreed to.

"Ma'am. Reports from the assembly areas" A young Imperial soldier stated as he entered the command room of the fort she was in 

"Place them there and order the General Suchet of the 3rd Army to send me a report of the supplies given to him last week. I want to know if everything is ready for our push southwards soon...this entire thing has been building up ever since we got here" 

"Understood Ma'am" 

"Mhh, dismissed" 

With the young soldier leaving the room, she looked over at the reports regarding the Black Guard units she was to be inspecting. Although they used to be the proper army of the Empire, the Black Guard had undergone some restructuring and had now turned into a special shock trooper force that was to act as the tip of the spear for the army and acting as the elite force of bodyguards who were all S-Rank thanks to the training they went through under Erhet and under the direct command of the dual monarchs that answered solely to them. So although she could technically show them she outranked them, Belle had no control over the Black Guard. Instead, she was in full command of a fully built Imperial Army that was filled to the brim with B-Rank soldiers and an influx of S-Rank demonkin volunteers from the Amma island chain. With the influx of powerful people, the training regimen of the army had skyrocketed to the point that in only six months, the once C and D-Class soldiers were now B-Rank through the training of the demonkin, with their progress only being rivaled by the Adventurer's from the Adventurers Guild who were taking on harder and harder quests and gaining experienced to get stronger and such. 

They had a total of five armies split across the region, each numbering 24,000 frontline soldiers with over 2,500 for services. Each army was under a general that Belle had handpicked for the job and placed a large amount of trust in them. But it was not just the armies that were large, the massive logistical train that was to supply them relied on the Imperial Logistics Corp that was in charge of keeping the baggage trains of supplies flowing as they marched south and working in conjunction with the Imperial Engineer Corp in charge of building foundational infrastructure in the areas secured. The far-right and left flanks of the advance were also going to be assisted by the newly constructed 2nd and 3rd fleets, each one comprising of 

• 6 - Emerald Class Sloops 
• 8 - Enterprise Class Brigs 
• 1 - Gaius Class Ship Of The Line

Overall, the forces they mustered were expected to roll over anything standing in their way, but the main problem was not with the fighting, but with the people they were going to interact with. 

"Hmmm, let's see those reports again" Belle mumbled as she picked up a report from the Adventurers Guild regarding the tribes just south of the border

The Adventurer's Guild acted as informal representatives of the empire, and as intelligence gatherers, albeit not to the same degree as those in H.I.S.S. The adventurers are still capable of giving detailed information on the location and the friendliness of tribes and clans south of the border. 

"Hmm...mostly friendly tribes before we make it pass the 'Crossing'...that's good news" 

After spending near to an hour receiving and reading reports upon reports, Marshal Belle stepped out of the command room and was blasted by the howling blizzard currently active in the area, with the frigid air circulating around her as it moved through the cracks and crannies of her outfit. But thanks to the magic monster crystals embedded into the lining of her outfit that circulated warm air throughout her body, countered the frigid air and kept the Marshal warm.  

"Haaa....its almost time" Belle muttered as she looked past the railings in front of her and toward the camp of soldiers currently chilling outside their tents and around campfires as the blizzard howled 

A/N: Here it is! A small chapter showing the preparations being done by the Halkare Empire before their march south in the coming months. It is finally time to start the namesake of the volume, The Long March South! I hope you all enjoy it!