[FMMIKA] Chapter 235: Two Years Later

Artorius was gazing at Altera as his mind was consumed by some indescribable thoughts.

Meanwhile, the Artorias cheered and rushed towards the frigate ship called 'Retribution' with excitement.

Not far from Altera, the bizarre frigate lay quietly. Whether it was due to the technology of the Servant Universe or some other reason, this frigate, which had been battered and bruised in the previous conflict, seemed miraculously unharmed. At least, it appeared undamaged on the surface.

"Self-repair systems have been running."

"But it seems like there's still a bit left to do." Ultimate Heroine Z by Artorius's side, said cheerfully.

"A bit left? That would be this."

As one of the strongest Alter and Heroine subspecies, Ex calmly said while stepping forward. Her sword was drawn, emitting an ominous black-red light. Simultaneously, the frigate flickered with the same glow, as if resonating with each other.

"Hey, what are you doing?! Stop that right now!" Crimson Moon, who witnessed this scene, was getting anxious.

She was worried that the Artorias were fooling around and might awaken the titan.

"Don't worry; everything's fine." Artorius replied calmly.

He had already thoroughly checked that Altera was still in her dormant state. Moreover, this slumber was long-lasting and nearly irreversible. The reason for this situation was the cyclical nature of the Umbral Star.

The Velber, with its main body known as the Umbral Star, the Wandering Star, or the Harvest Star, operates in a fixed orbit, traversing the Milky Way Galaxy once every 14,000 years.

It would be a considerable amount of time before the so-called 'harvest time' of the Umbral Star arrived. During this time, Altera was entirely safe. Even if Artorius did 'this and that' to her body, she wouldn't object. At most, she might momentarily wake up, creating a small Altera to chase him.

So, there was no need to worry.

Moreover, the Umbral Star was not invincible or immortal.

Perhaps for Gaia and Crimson Moon, this extraterrestrial enemy seemed terrifying. But for true powerhouses and important figures, the Umbral Star was just another enemy.

The so-called mystery, the so-called might, the so-called invincibility—it was all an illusion created by differing circumstances.

Artorius even had the optimistic thought that perhaps before the Umbral Star arrived, it would meet its end due to some multiverse conflicts.

All the possibilities were on the table.

Even if one might argue that the Umbral Star managed to barely survive in the multiverse conflicts, it would still be thousands of years before it returned.

In the span of thousands of years, for Crimson Moon or Gaia, it might be but a moment's rest. After all, they blinked, and the dinosaurs were extinct.

But for humans, thousands of years meant vast changes. It was worth noting that no empire in history had lasted more than a thousand years in terms of actual rule.

Between Modern civilization and the Industrial Revolution, the development had taken only a few hundred years in the original history.

As for Artorius's empire, according to the future timeline, it had maintained its dominion for fifteen hundred years.

In such circumstances, Artorius had more than enough confidence. Even if the harvest time of the Umbral Star came again, he had the ability to confront it. Even if he couldn't completely defeat it, he could repel it.

So, there was really no need to worry.

"But..."

Although Artorius tried to comfort Crimson Moon, she couldn't help but still feel worried. Of course, he didn't intend to say much more to her. He'd simply decided to go with the flow and let her see for herself when the time came.

But rather than focusing on this worn-out golden-haired woman whose value had been exploited dry by him, it was more worthwhile to pay attention to the newly acquired dark-skinned titan goddess.

Artorius was almost impatient, eager to have a close and affectionate encounter with the titan. His heart was filled with anticipation.

Meanwhile, not far away, the cheers of the Artorias could be heard. As Artorius contemplated how to study the White Titan, the dormant frigate that resonated with Ex also awakened.

"A small step forward..." Artorius said. "The next step is to focus and develop our own strength."

===

Year 502 AD.

Two years had passed since the Battle of Ctesiphon, and the roles of attacker and defender between the Eastern Roman Empire and the Sasanian Empire had reversed.

In the end, the Eastern Romans couldn't capture Ctesiphon and were forced to retreat, suffering losses in the process, much like Crassus in the past.

In head-to-head combat, the Eastern Roman army was no weaker than the Sasanians. Their combined forces of phalanx infantry, heavily armed cavalry, and skilled archers were superior to the Sasanians in open-field battles.

However, in retreat or during marches, it was a different story. The speed of infantry and cavalry differed, and their inability to coordinate increased the chances of vulnerabilities.

This allowed lightly-armored shock cavalry, familiar with the terrain and faster in speed, plenty of opportunities.

Moreover, the retreat itself was a significant test for an army. Without proper organization, many retreats turned into routs.

Those who suffered relatively few casualties in a direct battle often suffered heavy losses during the retreat.

So, how did Justinian's Eastern Roman army perform during their retreat?

It wasn't terrible, but it wasn't great either.

They paid a price of nearly 20 percent of their forces, approximately 40,000 troops. At the same time, they lost large swathes of territory in Mesopotamia and Syria that they had taken from the Sasanians.

===

"It's really frustrating..."

Thinking this, Justinian felt quite annoyed.

The current Eastern Roman Empire's defense relied entirely on the mountainous fortresses of the Cilicia region.

The empire was in a state of contraction.

The only consolation was that the foundation of the empire, Anatolia and Thrace, the vitality of the Greek region, was still intact. They could raise a hundred thousand troops at any time.

Now, Justinian was like the Sasanians two years ago. He could only wait for the Sasanians to exhaust themselves and then counterattack, just like the Sasanians did.

Their situation was reversed.

But this period would be quite difficult to endure.

Land routes between Eastern Roman territories and Egypt had been cut off. Justinian didn't know if the weak Egyptians could withstand the invasion of Sasanians.

If even Egypt was taken by the Sasanians, Justinian, as a Roman Emperor, would probably lose face and credibility.

In fact, even now, his prestige had greatly diminished.

While he was praised as an excellent emperor when victories were plenty, his reputation had now dwindled to something akin to Nero, especially when he heard rumors outside that comparing him to another Roman Emperor.

Who else if not Artorius Pendragon.

This made him very irritated—because apart from a few bootlickers who flattered him in his presence, almost everyone thought Artorius was a better emperor.

Under Artorius's rule, the entire Western Romans prospered and were at peace.

There were many achievements in domestic affairs, and reforms in politics, economics, and law were steadily advancing.

Agriculture, commerce, roads, infrastructure, handicrafts—everything had seen significant development.

In terms of culture, and especially military accomplishments, Artorius also excelled.

Let's not talk about his early campaigns. The victory over the Slavic barbarians in the north might not have been that remarkable.

But in the past two years, both Dragon Emperor and Justinian had initiated wars against their respective opponents. While the Eastern Roman Empire attacked Persia, the Holy Roman Empire launched a war in Spain.

Compared to Justinian's dismal situation of gaining victories and then losing them, essentially giving away all his gains, Dragon Emperor Artorius's victories were effortless and carefree.

Spain, as well as Morocco in North Africa, returned to the Roman fold after many years.

The Visigoths, who had struggled to muster a hundred thousand troops, melted away like snowflakes under the Holy Roman Empire's might.

The Holy Roman Empire effortlessly absorbed these lands.

Unlike the desolate lands of Eastern Europe, Spain had been cultivated by Romans, Goths, and even the indigenous people for over a thousand years. It was mature enough, with a population, culture, and wealth sufficient for it.

Ordinary people who had no strategic perspective might not feel anything about the currently barren Eastern European lands. Still, they would certainly be moved by the return of Spain.

Speaking of which, the greatest enemy of Rome before it rose to prominence, the descendants of the Phoenicians, Carthage, lived on this land. Furthermore, during the turbulent and collapsing era of Rome, the Goths were Rome's greatest enemies.

So, bringing Spain and North Africa back under imperial control had significant political significance.

One could even say it was a harbinger of the resurgence of Rome.

In this regard, combined with Artorius's series of achievements, many people now compared the Dragon Emperor to the great emperors of classical Rome.

Whether it was Caesar, Augustus, Hadrian, or Aurelius.

Of course, influenced by the spread of Christianity, some priests praised Artorius, saying he was a great ruler like King Solomon—a title that might seem absurd from a worldly perspective but had its merits from a Mystery perspective.

"Damn it..." Justinian muttered under his breath.

Ever since he laid eyes on Artorius for the first time, Justinian had regarded him as a rival. The negative emotions towards Artorius welled up within him, making him feel like a young man again, despite his advancing years.

But in the end, he forced himself to calm down and began to think seriously.

Turning against the Holy Roman Empire was out of the question.

Right now, the Eastern Roman Empire depended heavily on the Holy Roman Empire. And this situation wasn't likely to change in the near future unless the Sasanian Empire collapsed.

'It seems like my empire has become a shield for the other side...' Justinian couldn't help but think. He then pondered further.

'What would he do in his position?'

'And besides that, what is he doing right now?'

'Is he planning to conquer new enemies?'

'Is he preparing to expand territories?'

'Is he implementing new laws or economic reforms, or perhaps planning some major public works?'

Because the current Eastern Roman Empire was unable to engage in such exciting ventures, Justinian couldn't help but put himself in Artorius's shoes.

It was almost like how the Fuhrer in his forty-two liked to fantasize that he was actually Stalin, even though they were nothing alike.

===

"So, it's like this, huh? Well, well, that's quite interesting."

Artorius hadn't been planning to conquer new enemies or make any big moves. In fact, over the past two years, the Dragon Emperor had kept a low profile, leaving most day-to-day governance to the government and only intervening in major affairs.

In contrast, he had devoted almost all of his energy and attention to research.

Research on the White Titan.

"If only you had been as dedicated to studying Rune back in the day, you wouldn't be such a half-baked mage now." Scathach, as his teacher, said with a hint of envy.

Although she knew that her own Rune couldn't compare to the technique of the titan, it still bothered her to see her student show more interest in something foreign than in his own teacher.

"Well, we'll have plenty of time in the future, right?" Artorius replied with a light chuckle, earning a roll of Scathach's eyes.

Yes, there would indeed be plenty of time in the future. But would that time be spent truly studying Rune? Or for 'something else'?

But then again, she couldn't help but think.

As she carefully examined the titan, the slumbering dark-skinned beauty before her, Scathach couldn't help but marvel at Artorius's wisdom.

His research on the Vanguard of the Umbral Star was the right choice.

In just a year, the 'power' she had gained from Altera was on par with what she had acquired over the past century or even more.

'But what use is all this power to a woman like me?'

Scathach thought to herself as she gazed at Artorius. Her eyes flickered with an indescribable meaning.