The Empire had recovered from every scar left by that brutal winter, brought down upon them by the southern advance of the Land of Destruction. Sophien, the Empress, turned that historic catastrophe into opportunity—and she alone drew the line between the living and the dead.0

The dead were the old. The living were the young and the adults. The old died because they were weak. The young lived for the very same reason. The old died because their time had passed. The young lived because theirs had not yet come. The old chose death, and in that sacrifice, the young found life.0

The old—those too severely wounded to move or who could no longer move—were left without treatment. Their lives were surrendered so that the young and the adults might be spared. And the old, understanding what was asked of them, met that fate in silence.0

In the end, the deaths of the old served the Empire—both in the short term and the long. There were fewer mouths to feed, and reason, not sentiment, drove the Empress’s hand. To Sophien, it was not a tragedy. It was a demographic rebirth.0

After the southern advance, the work of restoring the people's livelihoods began. The slums and impoverished districts—once preserved under the pretense of tradition—had collapsed on their own. And so, all the land was claimed by the imperial family.0

The Empress approached development with strategic care. For the new districts, she adopted the system from the Principality of Yuren’s efficient urban model—and unlike the stubborn officials, she never dismissed it as beneath the Empire. Instead, she recognized its merit with open eyes.0

As a result, in just three months, Sophien restored order from chaos, regained control within the Empire, strengthened the monarchy's hold, and established the foundation for a reformation of its social st...0