"Seat," King Ura said. His gaze was cold, and he wanted nothing more than to crush those unruly rebels. But they had underestimated them once already, it would be foolish to attack again without fully understanding the situation.
"How are there five hundred estimated fighters among the unarmed?" King Ura asked. Even the word fighter felt strange on his tongue.
Everyone suddenly sensed something was wrong. The unarmed had long been without land or a group to call their own. They were scattered across the provinces of the Water Tribe and the Fire Tribe.
They were only permitted to occupy the most barren lands within each province. They were no different from wanderers. Though they camped in the same place, they had no leaders. It was every man for himself. So where did five hundred fighters come from?
"We have never had our people pay attention to the unarmed," an elder said with a bitter smile. "They were like rats beneath our notice."
Now they realized that had been a grave mistake. They hadn't even realized there were those among the unarmed who dared to call themselves fighters.
"Send some spies to figure out the situation," King Ura instructed. "I want answers within a day at most," he added after a pause.
A few thought the king was being overly cautious, but remembering how the two hundred men they had once thought excessive had perished, no one voiced objections.
The commander bowed and hurried away. They continued their meeting, though now they no longer regarded the situation with the unarmed as insignificant.
They agreed that after this group of rebels was dealt with, they would need to send Water Tribe soldiers to monitor the unarmed to prevent a repeat of such an incident.
Unfortunately, they had still underestimated the situation, it was far more difficult than anyone had imagined.
The next day, news came. It turned out everything had started about three years ago. A boy had gone mad after the death of his mother.
He declared himself king, claiming he would overturn the world. When he first spoke these words, people assumed he was grieving and had lost his mind. They laughed and called him the Mad King.
But he had been serious. He began recruiting able men to join him. Many among the unarmed were tired of being oppressed by the Water and Fire Tribes, so a few joined his cause.
They began by subjugating the unarmed, forcing them to pay dues after a day's work. Anyone who refused was robbed during the night and lost everything he owned.
This young man was not to be trifled with. He fought ten men at once and was barely injured. He killed without hesitation and showed no mercy. Soon, the unarmed feared him and paid their dues. Some cursed him but dared not resist.
Among the unarmed, the mad King was known and feared. Later, he began recruiting even more people.
Then, he led a group of unarmed men to attack a steward who had underpaid the workers. They didn't cause a public scene they simply tracked the steward's carriage on his return and beat him, taking everything he had. The steward didn't dare report it, fearing punishment for stirring up trouble.
He thought he could make up the losses the next day, but to his shock, the men returned and threatened more chaos if he dared to pay even a coin less. With one success, more followed.
Those men grew bolder, but no steward dared report them. Instead, they vented their frustration by forcing the unarmed to work even harder. They also didn't involve the overseas authorities, fearing the news would spread.
So for three years, the Mad King and the Water Tribe's stewards fought a secret war. With growing success, more men joined him; until now, when they even dared attack a military camp.
The Mad King was indeed mad. Why else would he think he could overturn the centuries-old power of the Water Tribe?
The more King Ura listened, the angrier he grew. "Those corrupt stewards!" he spat. He wanted nothing more than to execute them all.
He didn't need to ask to know the death of the Mad King's mother was likely caused by the stewards. King Ura understood: though the unarmed were treated like rats, they were still paid. After all, even a rat will bite when cornered, how much more a human?
He had long known of the stewards' corruption but had chosen not to act, needing to maintain balance.
"How much were they underpaid?" King Ura asked.
"Your Majesty, the amount varied by steward, some shorted a few coins, others paid less than half," the messenger replied.
When King Ura heard this, he was furious. He wanted to summon those stewards and have them beaten to death for the chaos they had caused.
"Your Majesty, although the stewards were wrong, we must focus our attention on those rebels and drive them back first," an elder advised.
"He is right," the Lord of the Third Clan agreed.
"Those involved stewards must be severely punished. If they hadn't hidden something this serious, it would never have come to this," King Ura said. He didn't care how little the unarmed were paid, so long as there was no chaos but he was livid that the stewards had hidden something so critical.
Everyone agreed the stewards must be punished but only after the rebels were dealt with.
"Send word to the unarmed: if they tie up and surrender the Mad King, I will forgive them and let them keep the stolen grain," King Ura ordered after some thought.
"Your Majesty..." A few elders and clan lords began to object, thinking the offer too generous. But meeting the king's gaze, they fell silent and suddenly understood his true intent.
Sending water tribe army was waste of resources. It was better to let them fight among themselves. There would be people among the unarmed who are scared, with the water tribe offering a chance of survival, the would definitely take it. After the mad King is used as example, no unarmed would dare have such thought in the future.