Southern Victoria, the Thracian region.
Lacey honored his promise, announcing the recognition of Thracian independence and supporting the Deep Pool leader, Abra Lana, to become the first Queen of the newly established Thracian Kingdom.
However, after the grand coronation ceremony, Abra Lana discovered that things were completely different from what she had imagined. Leithanien advisory groups had entered every government department in the Thracian region, and the command of the Thracian army was held in the hands of a Leithanien general. Even the approval of the kingdom's finances required the consent of a Leithanien official named Leinia.
The so-called independence was nothing but a lie.
"I led the Thracians to bleed and sacrifice not to trade Victorian slavery for Leithanien slavery!" Abra Lana declared to her sister Rafshini and her trusted cadres inside her own palace.
"Sister, the Leithanians are too powerful," Rafshini advised. "We cannot fight them. At least now... our people don't have to fight anymore."
"What is the difference between that kind of peace and begging on one's knees!" Abra Lana's ambition and pride would not allow her to accept such an ending.
She believed that Lacey was currently busy integrating Londinium and had no time to attend to a small place like the Thracian region. As long as she could create some chaos and demonstrate her value and unyielding spirit, she could force Lacey back to the negotiating table and grant the Thracian region true autonomy.
This was a fatal misjudgment.
Late one night, three days later, Abra Lana gathered her most loyal unit and raided the Leithanien barracks stationed on the outskirts of Hillock County. She planned to seize the Leithanians' weapons, then occupy Hillock County, declaring the Thracian region's second independence to all of Terra.
The battle seemed to go smoothly at first; the awakened Leithanien soldiers appeared somewhat caught off guard by the raid. However, less than half an hour later, blinding lights suddenly lit up deep within the barracks.
Dozens of "Stuka B-type" bombers, which had long been prepped and waiting in the field hangars, took off sequentially from the runway. Abra Lana looked up at those whistling steel giants, a chill rushing from the soles of her feet straight to her skull.
She had fallen into a trap.
Overwhelming bombs turned her and her troops, along with their unrealistic ambitions, into scorched earth. At dawn, when Leithanien armored units rolled into Hillock County, they encountered no resistance.
Lacey did not need negotiations. He only needed a swift and thorough victory to teach everyone the rules of the new Empire.
The Thracian rebellion caused only a negligible reaction before quickly falling silent. The speed with which it was quelled and the cruelty of the methods used shocked the entire Terra continent. All forces still watching from the sidelines clearly realized that the Leithanien Emperor's mercy and promises had prerequisites.
Lacey never left Londinium from beginning to end. He merely gave a simple order to Military Minister Taylor after receiving Gertrude's secret report regarding Abra Lana's unusual movements: "Clean it up."
At this moment, he was sitting in the study of the Londinium Royal Palace, reviewing documents regarding Victoria's economic reform. Gertrude contacted him via long-distance communications.
"Your Majesty, Abra Lana has been captured. Her core forces have been completely wiped out, the remnants are being mopped up, and the entire Thracian region is under our control," Gertrude reported concisely.
"Very good." Lacey didn't even look up. "I said long ago, independence is a privilege granted by the strong, not a right demanded by the weak. Abra Lana chose the wrong position."
"Regarding her disposal..." Serafina asked.
"Find a manor in Trullinczentyr and let her spend the rest of her life there," Lacey finally put down his pen. "A living symbol of failed rebellion is more valuable than a martyred saint."
The Emperor's mercy, like his cruelty, was merely a tool to achieve his ends.
"What about Rafshini's side?" Lacey asked.
"She chose... cooperation," Gertrude chose her words carefully. "It's just that her mental state isn't great. Losing her sister and being pushed into this position is too cruel for her."
"She will adapt," Lacey's tone carried no emotion. "Tell her, her sister chose betrayal, and she chose responsibility. The latter is a heavier burden, but only she can lead the Thracians to survive. This is her fate."
Gertrude nodded. These words would become the shackle around Rafshini's neck.
The Thracian rebellion came fast and went just as fast. In the face of Leithanien's thunderous military action, Abra Lana's carefully planned resistance failed to stir even a decent ripple.
The next day, newspapers and broadcasts controlled by Leithanien announced to all of Victoria the news that "Queen Abra Lana has voluntarily abdicated due to illness, and her sister Rafshini has accepted the mandate in this hour of crisis to inherit the throne." The official wording was watertight, glossing over a bloody suppression as a peaceful transfer of power.
For the vast majority of Thracian citizens who had just been liberated, the dust had settled before they even figured out what had happened. They only knew that the sky hadn't fallen, and life had to go on. As for who sat on the throne, it didn't seem that important.
Three days later, the new Queen Rafshini gave her first public speech in the central square of Hillock County. She wore a plain white dress without any luxurious ornaments. In the square, the people stood sparsely, most wearing expressions of numbness and uncertainty.
On the periphery of the crowd, Leithanien soldiers stood with live ammunition, unmoving as mountains; they were the true backdrop of this celebration.
Behind Rafshini stood Serafina. She had changed into a Leithanien civil servant's uniform today, her identity shifting from special envoy to Leithanien High Commissioner to the Thracian region. A brand-new administrative body had been declared established within just three days, its power overriding the Thracian royal family, responsible for assisting the new government in post-war reconstruction and management.
The speech was ghostwritten by Serafina's secretariat; the words were beautiful, filled with expectations for peace, prospects for the future, and endless gratitude to the "Great Ally, the Third Holy Leithanien Empire."
Rafshini held the script and took a deep breath.
"...The wounds of war are slowly healing. We have bid farewell to hatred and turmoil, welcoming a brand new era... Here, on behalf of all Thracian people, I pay the highest tribute to our most solid ally—the Third Holy Leithanien Empire, and the benevolent and great Emperor Lacey."
"It is their help that allows us to rebuild our homes..."
The speech ended. There were no expected cheers, only sparse applause. The public reaction was cold.
That night, after the ceremony, Serafina found Rafshini sitting alone in the darkness of the palace.
"The speech was very successful today, Your Majesty," Serafina's voice was gentle.
Rafshini did not respond, merely hugging her knees with her head buried in the crook of her arms.
Serafina sat down beside her and spoke softly, "I know you are in pain, but you saved your country. If resistance continued, the Thracian region would cease to exist. Now, although the people have lost a false independence, they have gained true peace and order."
"Leithanien trade caravans will arrive soon, bringing food, medicine, and job opportunities. Your subjects will thank you."
"They will hate me," Rafshini's voice came from her arms, muffled and tearful.
"History will give you a fair evaluation," Serafina said warmly. "Pain is temporary, Your Majesty. Learn to look forward. His Majesty has high hopes for you; he believes you can become a qualified leader."
She stood up and placed a document on the table in front of Rafshini. "This is the list of the first batch of aid supplies, as well as the reorganization plan for the new Thracian government. His Majesty hopes you can sign it as soon as possible. The sooner you start, the sooner your people can escape poverty."
Having said this, Serafina curtsied and quietly withdrew from the room.
Rafshini slowly raised her head, looking at the document, and her tears finally burst forth. From the moment she signed her name, she would thoroughly become a puppet in the hands of Emperor Lacey.
A new order in the Thracian region was rapidly established under Leithanien's iron fist. Leithanien advisors became the actual power holders of various departments, and the Thracian economy was completely merged into Leithanien's circulation system; currency, taxation, and trade were all controlled by Trullinczentyr.
Thracian youths were encouraged to work in Leithanien factories, and in exchange, cheap industrial goods and grain poured into the region continuously, thoroughly destroying its fragile local handicrafts and agriculture.
People no longer starved, and the streets became clean and tidy. But the smiles on their faces disappeared.
They gained bread and milk, but lost their souls.
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