UNIFIED W

Chapter 36: Irregular, part 1

One month had passed since King Prime the Seventh declared a total border closure, and no clan could venture beyond their borders for the rest of their lives.

Although the seven clans had lived separately and independently for many years, the king's decision made everyone's life extremely difficult.

King Prime the Seventh enforced strict rules on the other clans.

The primary rule was to avoid another catastrophic clan war, hence stages one and two were forced to trade with each other.

This arrangement was made to ensure the survival of people in the various clans, and the gradual reconstruction of their territories following the previous clan war.

After King Prime the Sixth died, his son took the throne and carried out his father's wishes, but King Prime the Seventh had his own motives, plans, and secrets that he kept hidden from everyone.

The elders from the prime family were against King Prime the Seventh becoming king. But due to his remarkable success in the war, he stood out as the perfect ruler.

Two main factors contributed to his unmatched claim to the throne: being the sole child of King Prime the Sixth and achieving remarkable feats at a young age, earning him the title of the youngest leader in history.

In a short period of time, King Prime the Seventh made some significant changes, which enraged the prime family's elders.

They warned him that this was not the way of the primes and that he was destroying what his people had fought for.

For the first time in prime history, King Prime the Seventh made a second-born child who is a woman to succeed him as the next ruler of the world after his passing.

The elders of the prime family and the rest of the wind clan, were enraged by this.

Another significant shift was that King Prime the Seventh would hold test events every five years, giving participants the opportunity to completely change their lives. People began to have hopes and dreams.

Despite this, the hopes and dreams were now crushed by the same man who had given them in the first place. This was, of course, extremely dangerous, and a dark age was on the horizon.

***

In Von City, just outside the fire clan headquarters......

The border closures were difficult for some clans, but for others, it was a little easier because they had predicted something similar would happen in the near future.

The Fire Clan faced the most difficulties, and their leader did everything he could to calm his people down, but they did not comply. The people of the Fire Clan and the inner circle were furious at their leader.

They had suffered humiliation in the test event, and the Fire Clan leader's grandson had lost their most powerful weapon, which had given them a significant military advantage over several other clans.

The fire clan leader had to deal with all of his people's frustration and anger and come up with a quick solution on how they should protect themselves moving forward.

But all the fire clan leader could think about was his grandson's well-being.

"Sir...Sir....SIR!"

The fire clan leader moved his gaze away from the window and toward the round table at which his inner circle council sat.

The vice clan leader for the fire clan, who was sitting on the opposite side of the table from the clan leaders' chair, took a deep breath before speaking out loud.

"Sir, now is not the time to zone out. Your people need you now more than ever."

The fire clan leader moved his gaze away from the round table and back to the window, where he observed a group of people gathered in front of the large gates just outside the headquarters.

The fire clan leader was deeply hurt and frustrated, but he must not show weakness in this situation because he believes his authority over the fire clan is slowly falling apart.

"How bad is it out there?"

"Sir, the resources we have within our territory are rapidly depleting, and the people are concerned about how they will survive now and in the coming winter."

The fire clan leader returned to his seat slowly, placing his cloak behind his chair before sitting.

The entire round table was silent for a while before the general of the fire clan stood up from his chair and began speaking to the fire clan leader.

"We are in a very dangerous situation as a clan right now, and because of the lack of resources and military strength, it won't be long before people start to turn against each other and kill one another like mindless beasts to survive."

The vice clan leader suddenly got up from his chair, causing it to fall backward, and slammed his fist on the table, drawing all attention in the room to him.

"Sir, the people outside are on the verge of a breakdown. They desperately need their leader's reassurance that their inner fire will never die and that the Fire Clan is the mightiest in the world, no matter what may come."

The leader of the fire clan inhaled deeply, then began to scratch his beard while thinking to himself.

After a short while, the fire clan leader got out of his chair and turned to face the members of his inner council, who were seated across from him.

"In two days, I will give a speech in front of the headquarters, and I expect everyone to be present."

All of the inner council members stood up and bowed down at the same time, leaving the fire clan leader alone in the meeting room.

He then walked back to the window, where he could see the anger and frustration of the people outside, and the guards outside the gates were having difficulty controlling the crowds.

The only thing on the fire clan leader's mind as he stared through the window was Zeru's well-being.

'I wonder if he's recovering from all the damage the poison did to his body.'

'I can't afford to lose another.'

The fire clan leader took one last look out the window before closing the curtains and walking from the meeting room to his house.