Ancient Empire Calendar, Year 1832
After the death of Tajong Ashterah, the Heir to the Ashterah Dynasty, Rian Ashterah, son of Brian Ashterah, took command of the army.
Rian resembled Brian so closely he could be called his exact copy.
His appearance, his personality, his fondness for women—in every way, he was his father.
He had many half-brothers, but all of them had died alongside his father in the last battle.
Now, as the sole surviving child of Brian Ashterah, he was leading half a million soldiers.
Rian was assessing the situation in his tent with his commanders.
"Ayaan is recapturing the southern lands we conquered very quickly. At this rate, it wouldn't be surprising if he started invading the Eastern Lands next year."
Qian Ashterah, son of Hugochen Ashbrum, asked for permission to speak.
"Commander-in-Chief, in this situation, retreating and gathering more troops is the only thing we can do."
Another commander, Cheng Yuan, son of Juan Yuan, asked to speak and shared his thoughts.
"I agree with Commander Qian. Our advance here is over. Anything beyond this point would be nothing more than a suicide attack. We must retreat, gather troops, and increase our strength."
With all the commanders in agreement, Rian made his decision.
"Very well, we retreat. Gather all our remaining forces and move towards the coast."
The commanders stood up and in unison said,
"AS YOU COMMAND, COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF!"
As the Ashterah commanders left the tent, Rian leaned back and began to lose himself in thought.
"My friends, or elders, always told me I resemble you, father... But what I'm about to do might cost everyone here their lives. Maybe retreating is the right thing... but I refuse to run."
After weeks of orderly retreat, the Ashterah army had reached the coastline in the eastern region of the Southern Lands.
When Qian Ashterah saw the endless azure sea after years of seeing only sand, he felt butterflies in his stomach, overflowing with happiness and joy.
"Finally, our weeks-long journey is over. Now we can go home!"
His positive energy affected those around him positively. Half a million Ashterah soldiers shared the excitement and joy of returning home.
Except for one person.
"Commander-in-Chief, give the order and let us return home."
Rian was in a negative mood, contrasting with his soldiers' high spirits. He was overflowing with anger.
"Home? Are you serious? We lost! We lost more than half our comrades in these deserts! We fled from the lands we conquered! We have nothing to compensate for all these losses!"
Rian's anger affected those around him.
Cheng Yuan, Rian's childhood friend, wanted to calm his anger and encourage him to think rationally.
"I understand you, Rian. But we have to retreat. We must gather troops and replenish our army. We cannot defeat the Arfas elite forces in the Southern Lands, surrounded by sand on all sides."
Rian looked deep into Cheng's eyes, his authority penetrating down to Cheng's very soul.
"You're right, Cheng. But I refuse to run."
Rian channeled his mana into his hand, created a massive fireball, and hurled it towards the ships. The entire Ashterah fleet was destroyed by Rian's own hand.
Panic and anger began to spread through the Ashterah army.
"Why? WHY WOULD YOU DO SUCH A THING?" said Cheng angrily.
Qian, forgetting all hierarchy, grabbed Rian's shoulders tightly and pulled him close.
"HAVE YOU LOST YOUR MIND? YOU DESTROYED OUR ONLY ESCAPE ROUTE, YOU FOOL!"
Rian punched Qian hard in the stomach.
"Ahh!"
Staggering from the punch, Qian was kicked hard before he could recover.
"AAAH!"
As Qian writhed on the sand, Rian walked towards him with an emotionless demeanor and voice.
"You seem to have forgotten something, Qian. The fact that we are friends doesn't change the fact that I am your commander. Secondly, I REFUSE TO RUN. IF I AM TO DIE, I WILL DIE FIGHTING. I AM RIAN ASHTERAH, THE LAST SON OF BRIAN ASHTERAH. I WILL NOT RUN, AND IF I DIE, I WILL DIE FIGHTING, LIKE MY FATHER, LIKE MY BROTHERS, LIKE MY COMRADES!"
Rian's speech instilled courage in the entire Ashterah army. A single thought passed through every soldier's mind.
"Even if we cannot win, dying fighting for such a commander would be a greater honor than winning."
Rian turned to his army, drew his sword, channeled his mana into his vocal cords, and amplified his voice.
With a voice so powerful and loud that even the soldiers at the very back of the half-million-strong Ashterah army could hear him, he roared.
"COMRADES! KINSMEN! ARE YOU WITH ME? ARE YOU READY TO FIGHT?"
The entire Ashterah army roared in unison, with the same feeling and thought.
"WE ARE WITH YOU, COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF RIAN!"
With the same enthusiasm and power, Rian added one final sentence that would strike a chord in every human heart.
"EVEN IF WE WEREN'T BORN ON THE SAME DAY, LET US DIE TOGETHER ON THE SAME DAY, MY BROTHERS! TO BATTLE!"
The Ashterah army repeated Rian's words.
"EVEN IF WE WEREN'T BORN ON THE SAME DAY, WE WILL DIE TOGETHER ON THE SAME DAY! TO BATTLE!"
The Ashterah army prepared for a battle that would ultimately end in death and defeat as if they were preparing for a wedding.
Every individual in the army, without forgetting their future and their past, prepared for the final battle they would enter with their kinsmen, born at different times but destined to die on the same day.
Days turned into weeks. The great battle the Ashterah army had been waiting for arrived.
Ayaan Arfas looked with astonishment at the Ashterah army, which had chosen to stay and fight instead of fleeing.
"Hah, look at them. I thought they would have run away by now."
"What are your orders, Commander-in-Chief?" said Arfas commander Nurullah Arfas.
Ayaan gave the order without hesitation.
"KILL THEM ALL!"
"HAAAAAAH!"
The Arfas armies, led from the front by their Commander-in-Chief Ayaan, attacked the Ashterah army.
"Today, we will probably die. All of us. Sea behind us, desert before us, and venomous vipers descending upon us," thought Rian.
Rian took a deep breath, drew his sword, and threw its hilt onto the sand.
The Ashterah soldiers did the same as their commander-in-chief. They drew their swords and threw their hilts onto the sand.
The sand was covered with the sword hilts, the only legacy the Ashterah soldiers, who had embraced death, would leave behind, like a blanket.
"ATTACK!"
At Rian Ashterah's command, the Ashterah armies attacked and engaged the Arfas armies in hand-to-hand combat.
The battle lasted for hours. Both sides fought bravely and fearlessly.
Rian proved to everyone that he was his father's successor, slaughtering tens of thousands of southerners.
Ayaan ordered his elite warriors, the Sand Worms, to kill Rian.
"Kill him."
A hundred Sand Worms mobilized and surrounded Rian.
Seeing this, Qian, even though he still hated Rian for the beating he had received, knew his responsibility as a commander.
"THOSE ARE THE HEIR'S KILLERS!"
When Cheng heard Qian's cry, he mobilized the units under his command.
"THEY'VE SURROUNDED THE COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF! ATTACK! PROTECT THE COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF!"
The Sand Worms that had surrounded Rian attacked him without delay.
"Did you think I was the Heir you defeated with a surprise attack? HAH!"
Rian cut down all the Sand Worms surrounding him without waiting for help.
The bandages covering the Sand Worms were torn, stained black with their blood.
Ayaan was filled with fear and astonishment.
"Impossible," he said, and began to retreat.
Realizing he was about to flee, Rian became enraged.
"YOU CANNOT ESCAPE!"
"AHHHH!"
Ayaan screamed in terror. With that scream, he lost all the authority and prestige he had built with his victory over Tajong.
Rian channeled his remaining mana into his legs and feet, using a speed spell to chase after Ayaan.
Realizing Rian intended to kill Ayaan, Nurullah Arfas ordered his soldiers.
"PROTECT THE COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF!"
But no Arfas soldier could withstand Rian for more than a few minutes. All were cut down by Rian's sword.
"DIE!"
Rian's sword was just a few centimeters from severing Ayaan's head from his body.
Ayaan felt death approaching. There was no escape now. His life and his aspirations began to flash before his eyes.
"I'm going to die... I'm going to die... No! I don't want to die! I'm too young to die! I was a victorious commander! A conqueror who reclaimed lost lands! A savior! I cannot die here!"
Nurullah Arfas saved Ayaan from his inevitable end. He threw himself in front of the sword, grabbed Ayaan's arm, and flung him meters away.
Nurullah's head was severed, but he had achieved his goal. Ayaan managed to escape.
"RETREAT! EVERYONE SAVE THEMSELVES!"
The Arfas soldiers, obeying Ayaan's cowardly retreat order, withdrew, suffering heavy losses.
Rian had won an unexpected victory. Overwhelmed by indescribable and intense emotional explosions, he let out a mighty victory roar.
"HURAAAAAAAAAA!"
The Ashterah soldiers joined in this victory roar.
"HURRRAAAAAAAAA!"
In that day's battle, both sides lost half their armies.
The Ashterah army lost two hundred and fifty thousand soldiers.
The Arfas army lost half a million soldiers.
"Victory is ours, Rian," said Cheng.
"Yes, victory is ours, but this is nothing more than a Berechiel victory."
Berechiel Victory
Berechiel I, the 17th Emperor of the Ancient Empire, won three great victories against the rebellious dynasties. However, in each victory, he lost half his armies. He uttered these words, which went down in the history of the Ancient Empire:
"One more victory, and I will be defeated and die."
And so it happened. He won one more victory, then was defeated and killed in the fifth battle.
After Berechiel I's death, Arjinisses I, who ascended the throne, gathered a large army composed of new, fresh blood.
With this army, he destroyed the rebellious armies and dynasties, carrying out plunder, massacre, and rape in the rebels' lands.
Meanwhile, Berechiel I's words and battles introduced a term to history: the Berechiel Victory.
This term began to be used in situations where victories pave the way for absolute defeat.
Rian and Cheng looked at the fleeing Arfas army.
"I feel it, Cheng. This fleeing Arfas army we mocked will return soon and destroy us all," said Rian.