Empire of the Ring

The whole Central Asia was rattled by the Uyghur issue, but the general election in Azerbaijan across the Caspian Sea was processed without any problem.

As expected, it was the ruling party’s, which was the royal family’s party’s side as well, a landslide victory.

It seemed the future regime would have a stable foundation as over 80 parliament seats, 61 were filled by the ruling party.

Having more than two-thirds of the seats on the ruling party’s side meant that it had the power to dismiss a cabinet.

Along with the victory, the royal family’s status also rose. It was because the party’s head was Sevan, and the royal family was behind it.

The Azerbaijani would have to cope with the royal family’s policy in this situation since the royal family would have the power to dismiss a cabinet.

The citizens of Baku were in a celebratory mood when the ruling party won.

They were relieved that the government would lead the nation in stability centered around the royal family. It was good news as the royal family was pro-peace and against war with Armenia.

Youngho, who made a short time to visit his family in Baku, had to have an earful from Fatima.

It was because he could not keep his word to spend time with the kids at the beach in Batumi, Georgia.

However, he could not tell her that he was busy with Uyghur issues. If she knew what was really going on, she would be greatly shocked.

Because Youngho had been extremely busy, Fatima and the kids could have a long break around the Caucasus region for three months.

The kids did not even want to go back to Kazakhstan as they loved the convenient life in Baku.

“Don’t they miss the royal palace in Kazakhstan? If the Kazakh people knew, they’d feel sorry.”

“Is there a rule that says that the royal family should stay in Kazakhstan? All are the same federal states.”

As Youngho was worried, Fatima wanted to stay in Baku.

“But wouldn’t the people in other regions be sad if you insist on staying here?”

“Baku is not stabilized yet. I want to watch it for a while before returning.”

Youngho’s heart would be at peace if Fatima and the kids stayed in Baku as there would be a battle against China soon, but the people’s view would be different.

If the country was in danger, the queen should secure her position and be the people’s psychological support, but if she stayed in Baku only, it would be seen as her neglecting Kazakhstan.

So, Youngho told her that he was willing to get involved in the Uyghurs’ independence.

Fatima roughly knew what had been going on, but when she frowned upon hearing about the detailed situation from Youngho.

“Oh, how can people do such dreadful things to other people? I don’t believe it.”

Fatima was tearful as she pitied the Uyghur people.

“That’s why I’ve been busy in Kazakhstan. This will be a long and hard fight. Many young people will be sacrificed as well.”

“What am I doing here? I should go back to the royal territory and encourage our people.”

Fatima knew what she had to do knowing that her whereabouts could be an issue when the fight began in Uyghur.

“Would you be okay with that? Aren’t you afraid of war?”

“I’m the queen of the Federal Kazakh Kingdom. Would it make sense if the queen hides in fear when the young people are dying in the battle against injustice? Besides, you will keep us safe no matter what, so why would I be worried?”

“Thank you for your decision. I will protect our family and Kazakhstan no matter what.”

Youngho was speaking the truth.

The defense power of Kazakhstan was not as weak as before, and the country had developed into a huge federal kingdom.

He was confident that it would not lose to China.

Besides, as long as the power of the Serbian Archduke’s ring existed, he could keep his family safe in any situation.

“Are you trying to lean on the power of the ring by any chance? Just know that we are not in the Middle Ages anymore. Don’t think about using it,” Fatima said as if she read Youngho’s mind.

“Have you gained the ability to look into people’s minds or something?”

“Oh, how long have we been together? I can read your face. The ring is good enough as the symbol of the royal family. Don’t think of using it to fight against the enemy. Nothing good will come out of it if it gets known to the world. Please just keep it as a sign of our family.”

“Hmmm… Okay. I will do as you say if that’s your will. It’s not like you can change the world with the power of the ring anyway.”

The old literature described that the ring had the power that lets its owner skip over huge mountains, but Youngho had not found such power yet after gaining some enhancements in his physical abilities.

Also, he always felt like he was cheating when he used the ring. Unless his family was in grave danger, he would not use the power of the ring from now on.

***

When Fatima said she would be returning to Kazakhstan, the kids were quite disappointed.

It was a natural reaction since they would have to go back to a strict study schedule if they went back to the palace.

Jelyan and Rena were especially bummed.

As teenage girls, they were more interested in outside activities and beauty, far from school life.

Although Fatima was concerned that her kids were not interested in school, she had to admit that the strict royal environment had pushed them away from liking it.

“All girls at that age are like that. If they find what they like to do in college, they will work hard.”

“They think they don’t have to study because you are always so soft with them. Don’t try to meddle a thing about their academic life, will you promise?”

She scolded Youngho when he asked her to let them study strictly at least for the morning when they came to Baku, saying that the life of a princess was already hard enough, but now she was complaining that they were not studying enough.

“You gave me an earful about forcing them to study last time…”

“Ehem… But I’m glad that Leon seems to be fond of studying these days.”

Leon showed a great focus on studying, which made both of their parents feel relieved.

He was only an elementary student, but when he was focused on reading, they anticipated him to be a great scholar.

It was what most parents dreamed of, but Youngho and Fatima also wondered if Leon was a genius.

He used to get himself in trouble a lot with his mischievous activities, but now they were hopeful since he was showing interest in different subjects.

“He’s surely changed a lot. My mother, who’s passed away now, told me once that I used to be a troubled kid when I was young, but I picked up a book one day. The next thing you know is that I grew up to be an awesome man you know of so well.”

“Hohoho…”

It seemed that she did not believe his story that much as she was only laughing, not saying anything back.

“I’m speaking the truth. I’ve been an outstanding student since I entered high school.”

“You mean you were a terrible student before then.”

“No, that’s not it. Back then, I was establishing a foundation as a decent person, and I didn’t pay much attention to my grades.”

Her face was still in full doubt.

Youngho realized that there was no point in trying to convince her anymore.

“Whew! It’s because of Leon that my adore for study and diligence lose their light.”

Fatima burst into laughter and grabbed her stomach at Youngho’s words.

“Oh, honey. I’m not blaming you. I know how brilliant Leon is. He’s full of curiosity, and that’s why he caused so many troubles, and it’s not anyone’s fault.”

“Oh, you’re finally admitting that he’s brilliant because he resembles his father.”

“Haha… Let’s say that for now. Anyway, I don’t worry about him, but as for Jelyan and Rena, they might bring down the royal family’s prestige if they don’t study too much. So, please leave it all up to me, okay?”

“All right. I always leave the kids’ matters to you. You are so good at dealing with such things.”

When Youngho was about to leave the living room, Fatima called him back, “Oh, darling! Should I draw a huge amount of attention since I’m returning to Kazakhstan after months?”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“You know the people must be enraged because of the Uyghur issues. Shouldn’t I say a word as the queen of the federal kingdom? I also want to have a press conference when I leave Baku.”

She wanted to inform the people why she was leaving Baku so suddenly and make a public statement as well when she arrived in Kazakhstan.

“That’ll be great. A word from the queen will cause a lot of variables.”

A word from the queen’s mouth would have a great ripple effect, and Fatima was well aware of it.

Making such a public statement would draw the world’s attention.

Informing the Uyghur issues to the world would clarify Kazakhstan’s justification and bring up the troops’ morale.

“I will speak as a mother of kids, not as the queen.”

Even if it would only have a declarative purpose, people’s sentiment would be different.

It would be more dramatic if the message was sent from the mother’s point of view, not from the queen’s point of view.

“I’ll say we shouldn’t let the enemy hurt Uyghur mothers’ hearts anymore. Can I do that?”

“You want to say that, who would dissuade you? It’s not like you’re saying something that doesn’t exist.”

It would be a great help to the people if the Queen returned to Kazakhstan, even though a battle might start in Uyghur soon.

Kazakhstan was behind the Uyghur independence fight, and the Chinese government would not sit idly by it, so there would be an armed conflict at the Kazakh border, too.

Officially, it was a struggle only between the mercenaries of private military companies and Uyghur militias, but China was aware that Kazakhstan was helping behind the scenes.

“I hope I’m not encouraging the people to go to war.”

As the Royal Bodyguards would enter the war, even though not the Kazakh regular forces, she was worried.

“Don’t worry, you are not encouraging them. The only thing left to do is to do what we’ve already decided.”

With just one or two more months of preparation, the troops would be ready for deployment.

Three civilian military companies had already been contracted to participate, while Royal Bodyguards and mountaineering units had also disguised themselves as militias and were already on standby at the Kashgar border.

“But it’s too much to hope that no one gets hurt in the war, right?”

“The Uyghur militia will be more damaged than our troops. They should be prepared for that if they want to achieve independence, and I’m never going to overdo it.”

It was already pre-arranged with the Kashgar government that the Kazakh forces would pull back if the situation became too much to handle.

Although Youngho hoped that kind of situation would never happen, he had to prepare for the worst situation possible. After all, it was war.