Chapter 175: Fortress without a crown

The excitement that had carried the sisters through the mountains suddenly disappeared at the sight before them. It was replaced with a silence so heavy that nobody seemed willing to be the first to speak.

Ashen Fortress was nothing like they’d imagined during the entirety of their journey, and certainly nothing like the place that had lived in their long forgotten memories from the stories their mother once told them.

Ru Yi remained beside Han Shuying as they followed the others deeper into the fortress, her eyes moving constantly over the ruins around them.

The road that should’ve led towards a thriving military settlement had become cracked and uneven beneath their horses’ hooves.

Weeds grew through the spaces between the stones and broken carts abandoned along the edges. The buildings rising on either side were enormous, constructed from dark grey stone and reinforced with thick walls that made them look more like small castles than ordinary homes.

Each of them had narrow windows, heavy wooden doors and high towers that had clearly been designed to withstand an attack.

Anyone could understand immediately why the place had been called a Fortress rather than a city. Even the houses looked like they’d been built for war.

"What the heck happened here?" Lieyin whispered to no one in particular.

Qingyue stared ahead, her expression becoming increasingly difficult to read as she took in every detail.

The banners of her mother’s reign had been torn down. Even the once polished streets were covered in dust. Everything reeked of neglect.

Then Ru Yi saw movement,

She initially thought it was a stray animal slipping through the buildings, but when the figure stepped into the open she realized it was a child. The girl couldn’t be more than seven or eight years old.

Her clothes were nothing more than layers of faded, tattered fabric. Her feet were bare against the cold stone.

She stopped when she saw horses and stared at them with wide, cautious eyes before quickly disappearing behind a crumbling building.

Ru Yi’s chest tightened. "There are children here."

Some stood in doorways, watching silently, while others sat beside broken walls with their knees drawn against their chests.

"This doesn’t look like a military settlement anymore," Yexue said quietly.

Qingyue’s fingers tightened around the reins. "What happened to everyone?"

A boy darted toward one of the abandoned carts and grabbed something from inside before running away.

Han Shuying’s hand moved toward her sword.

"Don’t."

Ru Yi stopped her. "He’s just a child."

Han Shuying frowned but lowered her hand. "We could very much be walking into a trap."

Ru Yi looked at Qingyue who had gone completely still. The sight of children living in poverty inside what had once been one of the strongest strongholds of the Eastern Empire seemed to have affected her more than anything else they had encountered.

The group continued deeper into the fortress, and with every street they passed, the situation seemed worse.

They had barely reached the center of the fortress when a group of armed men appeared ahead of them.

Everyone slowed their horses.

The men wore mismatched armor, some pieces clearly taken from different military uniforms. Their weapons looked old but well maintained.

At their centre stood a tall man who appeared to be in his late forties, with dark hair streaked with grey and a scar running from the corner of his mouth toward his jaw.

He looked at the group without the slightest hint of surprise. "Stop right where you are." The command echoed through the street.

Everyone dismounted.

Han Shuying immediately moved closer to Ru Yi, while Lieyin and Yexue positioned themselves beside Qingyue.

The man stepped forward. His gaze slowly moved through the group, stopping briefly on Kael before resting on Qingue. "Who are you?"

Qingyue stepped forward. "My name is Shen Qingyue, daughter of Late Empress Zhilan. The former Empress of the Eastern Empire."

The street went quiet as recognition flashed briefly in the man’s eyes. "And what do you want from us?" his tone had an edge to it.

"My sisters and I were exiled from the Capital, but we were told that the people of Ashen Fortress remained loyal to our mother."

The man’s face suddenly changed. His eyes widened slightly as he stared at Qingyue. "You..."

Qingyue held his gaze. "My mother entrusted this fortress to people she believed would protect her family. And we came here because we believed those people still remained."

The man’s expression became unreadable. Behind him, several soldiers exchanged uncertain glances. One of them whispered something, but the man silenced him with a look.

Qingyue stepped closer. "Tell me what happened here."

The man stared at her for several long seconds before looking toward the ruined buildings around them. "You came too late."

Qingyue’s expression tightened. "What does that mean?"

He looked back at her. "Ashen Fortress has not belonged to your family for over seventeen years."

Yexue’s face went pale.

Lieyin stepped forward. "Who took it?"

The man’s jaw tightened. "That’s not what you should be asking." He looked toward the children watching them from the alleys. "Ask what happened to the people who stayed."

Qingyue followed his gaze, dread sinking to her guts. "What happened?"

"The capital," he answered in a solemn voice.

"What?"

"The capital did this," he repeated, his voice carrying a bitterness that seemed to have been buried for years. "After Empress Zhilan died, the new Empress sent soldiers here claiming that we were plotting treason."

"Of course," Lieyin muttered under her breath. "Empress Lihua does have a thing for accusing people of treason."

Yexue stepped forward, disbelief written across her face. "Why would she attack Ashen Fortress?"

The man’s gaze moved toward the fortress walls. "Because this city remained loyal to your mother. Soldiers came under the imperial banner, claiming that they were here to inspect the fortress. They raided every storehouse, seized our weapons and tore down everything that carried the former Empress’s name."

Qingyue’s fingers slowly curled into fists. "And the people?"

The man’s expression hardened. "Those who resisted were killed. Those who could flee escaped into the mountains. The rest of us stayed here because we had nowhere to run to."