New World, New Life: I Became A Bigshot In The Ancient World
Chapter 100: DREAMS AND MEMORIES (2)

Chapter 100: DREAMS AND MEMORIES (2)

Aristia’s eyes snapped open. She was resting on a textbook. She sat up straight and looked around, her heart pounding quickly.

She had been dreaming. She was not in the real world nor was she at home. She was in the book world. She was in the room for her history lesson.

She tried to calm her beating heart , her mind still reeling from the realistic dream she just had.

The first dream she had was the scene that happened in the morning of the day she read the novel and entered the book world. The second dream was a scene that happened when she was fourteen. They were both memories.

The second dream was a memory she was trying to remember, even though it had been mixed with dream effects, like when she had hugged her parents and told them she missed them. That hadn’t happened in real life. It seemed the dreamlike memory had been influenced by her emotions.

Frustration filled her heart. Someone decided to wake her just when she was about to finally find out what memory it was she was forgetting. She didn’t know why she couldn’t recall it before.

"Princess, are you alright?"

Aristia looked up to see Viscountess Vasily Hemsworth staring at her with worry in her eyes.

"Um, yes. I am." She replied, sitting up and rubbing her eyes.

"You fell asleep in the middle of the lesson." Vasily stated the obvious.

"I apologise for the unsightly behavior, Viscountess Vasily." Aristia apologised.

"It is alright, princess Aristia. Perhaps, we can end the lesson for today. You seem to be tired." Viscountess Vasily Hemsworth suggested. It was remaining an hour and a half before the class of three hours ended.

She wondered what would make the child so tired for her to sleep during the class. This had never happened in her class since she started tutoring noble children. Of course, they were always prim and proper.

However, the third princess had also never done this. It was unusual. Did she not sleep the previous night?

"That is not necessary, Viscountess Vasily. I would like us to continue the class." Aristia replied.

She was no longer sleepy after she had been woken up from sleep. She had already gathered herself together and now sat straight in her seat like the princess she was. Or was supposed to be.

"If that is the case, I will repeat my words." Vasily said. She liked the little princess and didn’t mind going through the trouble.

"I will have to trouble the Viscountess." Aristia smiled gratefully at her.

Vasily returned her smile and continued,

"Before his death, King Fabian amassed great wealth and power. The kingdom grew to an empire. It also was protected so it became hard to invade the kingdom. This is because it is surrounded by mountains on the North which make it hard to cross, the South is protected by an ocean, the East is protected by a large forest filled with dangerous wild animals, and the West is protected by a Savannah."

Aristia cut in at that moment, "Viscountess Vasily, I would like to know about the kingdom’s Chivalry. Does Amberale only rely on the natural protection from nature?"

Vasily paused for a moment, not expecting that the princess would be interested in knowing this, then continued.

"Even though the Kingdom has not experienced any wars in almost a century, it has diligently trained its soldiers in case of war. Throughout history, there have been wars with invaders mainly coming in through the West as it is the easiest of all the places in Amberale to invade. Because of that, there are more soldiers stationed in the West."

Aristia nodded in understanding. In the book, during the famine, the other kingdoms took advantage of the situation to try to invade the kingdom. The target had been the West. So, this was the reason why.

In Amberale, there were formidable environmental features that helped in its defense;

The North, which was surrounded by mountains would not be easy to pass through. In the mountains, you had to factor in how to make use of terrain cover and slope, the physical effort of crossing terrain, the impact of different altitudes on the bodies, rugged terrain, narrow pathways, and the potential for ambushes. The enemies had to survive even before they came across the enemy.

There were valleys between the mountains for open warfare, but there were also enough rocks and hills in surrounding areas to ambush enemy supply routes. The Mountains could block off certain areas and make it unnecessary to station troops within the inaccessible area. The elevation could also provide an advantage to soldiers using projectile weapons, such as arrows or artillery pieces, with gravity working to the advantage of the more elevated party.

The same was so for the South, which was surrounded by an ocean which would make it hard for them to get through.

Ships were vulnerable to the whims of weather and sea conditions, including storms, rough seas, and unpredictable currents, which could damage or sink vessels and endanger the lives of crew members. There were also often infested with pirates and privateers who preyed on merchant vessels and military convoys, posing a constant threat to military operations.

It also required careful planning and coordination to maintain a fleet at sea for extended periods to ensure an adequate supply of food, water, and other provisions for crew members and soldiers on board.

There was also the problem of communication between ships at sea which was limited to visual signals, flags, and shouted orders, making it difficult to coordinate maneuvers or respond to changing circumstances in real time.

The risk of shipwreck was also very present, especially in unfamiliar or treacherous waters, and could result in the loss of valuable resources, personnel, and strategic assets. Successful passage through the ocean during wartime required skilled seamanship, strategic planning, and adaptability to the unpredictable forces of nature and human adversaries.

The East was surrounded by a forest which could provide cover and concealment, making it difficult to detect movements. The dense, thick vegetation, uneven terrain, and limited visibility could slow down troop movements, coupled with the natural obstacles such as fallen trees, creeks, and ravines, which could slow and hinder progress and require detours. It was also a home to wildlife and hostile elements, adding to the dangers faced by enemy troops to invade the kingdom.

The West was surrounded by a Savannah. Savannahs had vast expanses of open grasslands, which offered little natural cover or concealment for troops and made it difficult to hide movements from the enemy.

They were often subject to extreme temperatures, with scorching heat during the day and chilly nights. These harsh environmental conditions could pose risks to troops’ health and morale, especially if they were ill-prepared or lacked adequate supplies.

Also, water sources in savannahs could be sparse and unreliable, making it challenging to maintain troops’ hydration and supply needs during prolonged military campaigns.

It was also home to a variety of wildlife, including predators and disease-carrying insects, which could pose additional threats to invading troops’ safety and well-being.

It was also challenging to navigate across vast, featureless expanses of savannah, especially without clear landmarks or recognizable terrain features to guide troops’ movements, and despite the open terrain, defending forces could still employ ambush to disrupt advancing enemy troops, using natural features like tall grasses or scattered trees for concealment.

However, even though it was still challenging to tread, the West was much more easier to pass through compared to the other directions, which was why it was the route the enemies had taken to invade the kingdom in the book.

"Viscountess Vasily, could you tell me more about the minor nobles?" Aristia requested.

Vasily nodded. "The minor nobles were first chosen by King Fabian’s descendant, King Asher. Because they were not part of the descendants of the first nobles blessed by Lord Nerin, they were accepted by pure nobility on the basis that they be inferior to the descendants of the pure nobles and as such be called second generation nobles even though they are not literally from the second generation." Vasily explained lengthily.

"Whoever else was granted the privilege of a receiving a noble title and becoming a part of Nobility was only able to belong to second generation nobility, or as it is also called, minor nobility, regardless of their relationship with the reigning monarch, or their feats." She ended.

"What titles do they possess?" Aristia asked with interest.

"Another condition given for their acceptance into nobility was that they couldn’t be given high titles like Duke or Marquis. They could only be given titles of Counts, Viscounts and Barons. Since they are seen as inferior to the pure nobles, they are lower in status than a pure noble with the title of Baron, which means that they are levels lower than the pure nobles who possess the same title as they do." Vasily answered her question.

Aristia understood now about the minor nobles. They weren’t given titles of high position like Duke or Marquis, and a Count who was a minor noble would be lower in position than a Baron who was a pure noble, even though the title of Baron was supposed to be lower than that of a Count.

"Do you have any more questions Princess?" Vasily asked.

Aristia shook her head, "No. I don’t."

Viscountess Vasily wrapped up the lesson and stood up to leave.

"Viscountess Vasily. Have you made up your mind?"

Search the lightnovelworld.cc website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.