The Emperor and the Knightess

Book 1

Story 1: Winter

Chapter 1.

Poliana’s life was average.

People like to talk about other people’s lives. Some may question how such an unlucky and tragic life could be considered average, but another may retort that one’s ambition for power and revenge was a normal part of life.

For Poliana, she was indifferent about her life.

Her life may have been a bit different from others but it was not. Her life started out the same way as everyone else’s, and it will end the same way as well eventually. What happens in between may be slightly different, but eventually, everyone’s life ended the same way.

You were born, you live, and you die.

Simple.

Poliana lost her mother early and her father remarried immediately to gain a male heir. Her stepmother did give birth only a year after her marriage, but it was another girl.

Poliana didn’t know why, but after the birth of her stepsister, her father and her stepmother stopped trying for another child. In fact, they decided that the family name and fortune would be inherited by one of their daughters.

It was no surprise that it wasn’t Poliana who was going to be their heir.

Poliana lived in a kingdom named Aehas, which was a small country in the northern part of the continent. Although it was a tiny nation, Aehas maintained its unfriendly relationships against its neighbors.

It was no wonder Aehas suffered from constant war. Many died, and when the knights and the noble families began to avoid participating in these wars, a new law was made in Aehas.

Any nobility that doesn’t provide at least one member of its family to participate in the wars would lose their status as a noble. To prevent the noble families from forcing their very-distant relatives to the war, the law specifically stated that only a direct member of the family, or even the heir him or herself, had to participate.

And if the family only had daughters and decided to send a distant male cousin to war, then, that cousin or their direct family member were to inherit their noble title. It was also illegal to marry off the daughter to a random man and send him off to the war. In cases like this, then the woman would still not be able to inherit that title even if her husband died in a war.

Poliana was born to a mediocre noble family in Aehas. For her stepsister Liana to inherit the title, as their parents hoped, one of the sisters had to serve time in the military.

It was no surprise that Poliana was chosen by her parents to serve this time.

Her little sister Liana led a favored and extravagant life. Her hair was brushed to silkiness many times a day and she adorned with the most expensive ribbons. Her dresses were decorated with lavish laces and she enjoyed the most luxurious perfumes.

Learning to play the piano and harp, reading the popular romance novels by the cozy fireplace, and being loved unconditionally by her adoring parents…

And while Liana was being pampered senseless, Poliana was resigned to the harsh life of a knight. Her hair was cut short at all times and she only wore pants.

One unique thing in Aehas was the fact that it was the only country that allowed a woman to fight in wars.

A female knight.

Knightess.

In other countries, women were sometimes given honorary knighthood but they were never allowed to actually fight. It was different in Aehas, however, it was very rare. In fact, it was considered an embarrassment for any noble family to send in a knightess to represent them. If it was absolutely necessary, then the family would often bribe their way in to make sure that their knightess would be given a desk job instead of being sent to the battlefield.

But Poliana’s parents didn’t take these precautions. Rather than bribing to ensure Poliana’s safety, they chose to cut her hair, dress her in boy’s clothes, and give her a sword.

Their intention was obvious.

Go fight and die.

Some may think that her parents did this because they realized Poliana was a talented fighter.

A genius swordsman? An amazing combatant?

But in truth, this was not the case. There has never been any notable solider in Poliana’s family history, and both of Poliana’s birth parents were of average health.

As time passed where Poliana trained to become a knight, she quickly realized her physical limits. No matter how hard she tried, she could never win a single fight against the others since she was weaker and slower.

To survive, she needed to be talented. She needed to be much more talented than everyone else but, unfortunately, she had no aptitude for combat. Her teacher, an old knight, informed Poliana’s father that she needed to give up on being a knightess or else she would die, but Poliana’s father didn’t care. He thought that it was her duty to enter the war and die so that her little sister Liana could inherit the family title. It was essential for Poliana to die or else, she would inherit the family title after she had served her time.

The old knight had no choice but to teach Poliana how to fight. He said to her, “Survive. No matter what happens, you must live. That will be the biggest revenge you can have against your parents.”

If Poliana returned alive after 10 years of military service, she would inherit the family title, but the chance of her surviving this long was unlikely.

The old knight suggested to Poliana that she should try her best to get close to her superiors or any high-ranking soldiers so she could get a desk job. That was the only way for her since she had nothing to offer. She had no money to bribe anyone and no one at the front would be sympathetic towards her. It had to be her father who needs to take care of this, but he was unwilling to do so.

The old knight explained, “Poliana, make sure to study the art of war. Study the strategies of warfare and do not blindly trust your superiors. If it looks like your side is going to lose in a battle, you need to run. You won’t be called a deserter as long as you’ve returned to your base.”

One fortunate thing was that at least, Poliana was of noble birth. Any nobles automatically started out as officers, not foot soldiers. The most and immediate deaths during a battle occurred to the foot soldiers fighting at the front line.

If Poliana survived a few battles, she would be promoted and therefore become a bit safer. The old knight’s best advice for her was to study battle tactics because no matter how hard she tried, she was never going to become a good soldier.

Thankfully, Poliana was intelligent and her brain was her only talent.

Her skin was burnt from training outside so much. She was covered in scars, especially her hands. Her hair was shorter than many boys’ and she was extremely thin. She still looked like a boy.

When her period started, the old knight explained her worst-case scenario.

“If you are caught by your enemies, you will be raped.”

“I know.”

Most women found in battlefields were either prostitutes or wives of the soldiers. In this world, killing prostitutes and raping regular citizens were banned.

However, a knightess was different. If a woman holding a sword was captured, they would be allowed to kill or rape her. They were to be considered as a soldier and therefore, they were treated like a man.

In Aehas’ history, there have been a few renowned and revered knightess. They were amazing soldiers, but in the end, they were all killed.

Raped and murdered.

The old knight continued, “It might not even be your enemy who rapes you. It could be someone in your own army as well.”

“I know that too.”

Women were considered bad luck in battles and most men would not even acknowledge a female’s presence at the frontlines. It was public knowledge that some of those famous knightesses were actually murdered by their male fellow soldiers.

This was why most knightesses didn’t make it to the battle. A case like Poliana’s was extremely rare.

“Why do you work so hard, Poliana? What are you working for?” The old knight asked Poliana, who looked calm.

“I don’t know.”

“A lack of goal can ruin a person.”

“I have nothing else to do other than to work hard, to try my best.”

She knew that it didn’t matter. No matter how hard she worked, she knew how her life would end, but despite it all, Poliana still tried. If she was a man, everyone would have praised her for her hard work, but because she was a woman, everyone laughed at her.

Only

Her own little sister laughed at her. Liana ate her sweets and smiled sweetly. Her beautiful long hair was her pride and joy, and Liana often teased Poliana about her short hair.

Whenever Liana made fun of her, the old knight told Poliana to slap her. What Poliana had to go through, and what she had to face in the future, were all because of her.

Once, Poliana considered breaking Liana’s nose, but she decided against it. Her own parents abandoned her, and so Poliana felt nothing for her family. She was not even angry at them.

It was odd how Poliana didn’t feel anything. She didn’t feel happy, but she didn’t feel unhappy either. She didn’t know the purpose of her life.

Poliana wondered if she would be able to feel happiness in a battle. If she won, would she feel something? Happiness? Joy? If she succeeded in surviving the war and returned home, would she feel gleeful?

If she was given the chance to let her hair grow and learn piano, would her life be better?

She wanted to find happiness, and for now, the only thing she could do was to do her best to survive.