Editing Tytania:Volume 1 Chapter 3 (section)

=== II ===
A month later, on the 10th of June that same year, Ariabert Tytania saw action in an engagement as fleet commandant. The duchy of Turanzia, which had some distant ties to the Vardana Empire, had mobilised their forces. Of course, they didn’t do it out of concern for the Vardanan plight but rather over disputes concerning shipping rights.

Normally, the commander in charge should have been Zarlisch, but Ariabert had strongly requested to lead the troops himself, seeking to avenge the humiliating defeat he had suffered the previous month at the hands of some obscure commander called Fan Hyulick.

If depicted in an uncharitable manner, he was obsessed with restoring his personal honour, but should he suffer another defeat, Ariabert’s standing among the Four Dukes would plummet at the lowest. Fully aware of his conundrum, Ariabert went to the battlefield, determined to both restore his honour and defend Tytania’s interests. Among Tytania’s Four Dukes, there were no cowards.

The 10th of June, Syracusa Star System. Having already left Turanzian space, this star system could be called Tytania’s zone of space control. The 3,300-vessel fleet of Turanzia in inertial flight maintained a state of combat readiness when they received intelligence from their reconnaissance satellites.

“It’s Tytania!”

The word raced through communication channels with the same meaning as “disaster”. An extreme tension ran through the entire fleet. Soon, on the screens of each ship appeared what appeared to be a string of pale blue sparkles forming a gigantic necklace of light.

It was Tytania that controlled the mainstay of transport and communications in space. This meant that from a military perspective, they were well-positioned to launch surprise attacks. Still, they were, of course, not infallible. The 3,300-vessel Turanzian fleet didn’t neglect their duties of searching and detecting. Thus, at a distance of five or six light-seconds, they managed to detect the Tytanian fleet pouring on them at 10 o’clock. The commander, Rear-Admiral Connaught, swallowed hard as he ordered to intercept it. The Tytanian fleet numbered 3,600 ships, so their combat strength could be estimated to be roughly on par. The 10th of June, 14:30. The battle of Syracusa Sector began. As one could expect, the fight started with artillery fire, but the Turanzian barrage overwhelmed the Tytanian force, and the battle was folding to their advantage.

“Fire! Destroy them!”

Screamed Connaught. It wasn’t as much a command as an exclamation of excitement, but driven by their momentum, the Turanzian fleet advanced as it rained down fire, shattering the Tytanian fleet which had been caught off guard before it could complete its formation.

The Tytanian fleet retreated. It seemed they had lost their nerve under the heavy barrage. Their manoeuvring was a far cry from the usual Tytanian ''élan''. It was as if Ariabert Tytania, a seasoned though young veteran, had lost his confidence since his defeat at the “Battle of Cerberus” and could have veiled his tactical acumen. Believing this to be the case and prioritising his wishful thinking over observation, Connaught pressed on with his aggressive advance.

Connaught’s feeling of victory lasted less than two hours before being shattered forever. Just as the Tytanian fleet seemed to have dispersed while disorderly retreating, broken by the Turanzian charge, over a thousand gunboats deployed in a line across the width of the fleet and fired a volley of Weigert cannons at the charging Turanzian army.

It was none other than Fan Hyulick’s tactic of using gunboats to deploy Weigert cannons.

Connaught wasn’t unaware of the existence of that tactic. But he never could have imagined that Tytania would have employed a tactic that their enemies had used against them. Moreover, the very notion of using gunboats to destroy giant warships was the mindset of a pauper, something that was entirely at odds with Tytania. This preconception had led Connaught astray. Tytania overwhelmed its enemies through numeric superiority and conventional tactics and crushed them with all her might. Who could have thought she’d use such a stratagem, and one that was taught by an enemy, no less?

And yet, reality exceeded the limits of Connaught’s imagination. Within 30 seconds, the Turanzian had lost 30% of their forces and been rendered unable to continue the battle.

“Tytanian bastards…”

With rage and despair pounding at his optical nerves and vestibular system, Connaught almost fell to his knees. His chief of staff, Rear-Admiral Hafez, steadied him as he ordered to retreat.

As Tytania launched their counter-offensive, a barrage of flashes and fireballs, Connaught’s flagship, the ''Marius'', sustained damage to four sections of its hull, barely managing to shake off their pursuers. But with that single engagement, the Turanzia had lost 70% of their stellar forces, leaving them with no other choice than to completely abandon any resistance against Tytania. A one-sided unequal treaty would sooner or later be concluded between the two belligerents.

In a single month, Ariabert Tytania had avenged his recent defeat. Moreover, he did so by employing the very tactics of the enemy commander who had defeated him. Tytania never resigns herself to defeat but turns it into an advantage to bolster her glory. This very flexibility was utterly terrifying.

“Did you see the terror of Tytania? They never lose their innovation spirit. This is the very reason our empire, clinging to its old ways, fell behind them!”

The one who shouted these words as he hurled his cup on the deck of his starship was Salam Amzekar, a young admiral of the Vardanan Imperial Fleet.

He was a tall young man with straw-coloured hair and amber eyes who had been staying in the duchy of Turanzia as a military advisor when he found himself drawn into this battle, and like Commander Connaught, he had barely escaped death. He could no longer return to his homeland. His only option to ensure his safety was to find a place to seek asylum.

Those who lacked strength could only rely on tradition and style. Back in the past, the Vardanan Empire, through its own power, stood on equal footing with the Interstellar City League. Though they were at a general disadvantage and gave the impression of serving as a foil to the League’s superiority, they nevertheless stood on their own two feet.

When Tytania had left the City-state League and thrown her lot with the Vardanan Empire, the emperor and his subjects applauded with joy. They felt as if Vardanan supremacy over the galaxy was about to be established, and an infinite future was lying spread before the Empire like a fertile plain.

The conclusion was the current situation. For Tytania, the Vardanan Empire was nothing more than a tool to dominate the universe. It was a historical fact that Tytania didn’t simply mock Vardana but the very concept of any national dignity. Tytania’s philosophy was that if something grew old, it should be simply demolished and rebuilt, just like a house.

The Vardanan Empire’s government consisted of twelve members, which included the Prime Minister, Vice-Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Minister of Finance. For over a century, the role of Minister of Military Affairs had invariably been held by a member or senior official of the Tytania clan. The current incumbent was Marquis Estrade Tytania, Clanner Ajman’s half-brother from a different mother.

In theory, the Empire had a constitution and a parliament, but they were virtually defunct. While there were 1,660 seats in parliament, its members served for life, and vacancies were rarely filled, so there were currently only 907 members with an average age of 72.9 years.

In the past, Neville Tytania had once offered a scathing critique of the democratic society in which he was raised.

“Democracy and such are but a craft for political veneer. In this universe, how are humans truly worthy of a democracy?”

''What can be expected from those who merely scavenge the scraps of the spoils of corrupt politicians?'' Thus spat out Neville Tytania. It was probably not unrelated to the fact that his father had sought to promote stronger political integration with the Interstellar City League, only to face opposition and be ousted through underhanded methods, dying in despair.

Anyhow, Vardana’s state, court, and government were in a pathetic state even before Tytania began meddling. They merely handled administrative tasks that Tytania couldn’t be bothered with and collected taxes. But even in a pathetic state, they weren’t without feelings.

“The Tytanian tyranny can no longer be tolerated.”

Needless to say, this was a conviction shared among many courtiers. But a conviction that was not backed by any action could only gnaw at them from within.

“In the first place, what exactly is Tytania! Barely two hundred years ago, they were just some powerful figure in the City League. It was thanks to the benevolence of His Majesty Harsha II that they could rise to power, and they now act with such arrogance.”

It was a forceful statement, but it increased their sense of emptiness proportionally. Tytania, just some powerful force in the City League, became over the generations a dynasty that trampled all nations. The passage of time was the same for all. So while Tytania was climbing ambitious stairs, what were the rulers and subjects of the Vardanan Empire doing?

On the evening of the 12th of June, after receiving news of Ariabert Tytania’s victory, fourteen high-ranking officials of Vardana’s Imperial Court gathered in the residence of Zagden, the Minister of the Interior. The gathering was done under the pretence of celebrating Zagden’s second-year anniversary since his appointment as a minister, but all those present were anti-Tytania. Among those present were the Minister of Justice Herawa, the Minister of Civil Affairs Nunes, and the Imperial Head Secretary Defontaine. The meeting was taking place in the billiard room in the basement, the billiard table having been removed and replaced with rows of tables.

Guards stood watch outside the door, and once everyone was sure enough that the premises were secure, the drinking and conversation were in full swing.

“Tytania is not invincible. Wasn’t that indeed proven some days ago at the battle of Cerberus? Defeating Tytania isn’t a pipe dream by any means.”

“But in only a matter of days Ariabert Tytania avenged his defeat. Didn’t he, conversely, just demonstrate Tytania’s true might to the world?”

“Correct. Dreadful indeed. As long as she has flexibility and resilience, we must not underestimate Tytania.”

It was rare to find a banquet where the atmosphere grew darker as drinks were poured. Since it was, after all, a gathering of political losers voicing grievances against victors, there wasn’t any reason the mood would be cheerful, but since the majority of those present were former nobles who lacked courage to defy Tytania, the best they could manage to do was to gather in secret and vent at those absent, emboldened by alcohol.

Occasionally, conspiracies were proposed but never took any concrete form, and they were forced to admit that they produced nothing but idle talk. But this evening was somewhat different. Someone said the following.

“Couldn’t we make use of the Minister of Military Affairs?”

As the voice rolled, a wave of metallic tension rippled through the gathering. Their eyes clouded by alcohol seemed to glimmer with a light resembling hope.