Ashoka said, "Mom, tell me why nobles hate commoners, and what does that mean? Five hundred years ago, a war started because of commoners."
Ashoka's mom said, "Sit down and listen. I also don't know the full history of what happened that day and why that war continued. Commoners and all other people who were born in the past hundred years think that the war started because all the kings at that time wanted to rule the world, but that was not the full truth."
"The history was erased by the kings of the Ten Kingdoms because it was part of an agreement."
Ashoka said, "Mom, what are you saying? That war was not started because all the kings wanted to rule the world? Then what was the truth?"
Ashoka's mom said, "When did I say the war was not started to rule the world? I said that was not the full truth. In this time, only eleven people know the full history. Those people are the ten kings of the Ten Kingdoms, and the eleventh person is... forget what I said about the eleventh. There are only ten."
Ashoka said, "Stop, Mom. You're confusing me so much. Please tell me what happened five hundred years ago."
Ashoka's mom said, "I, the Queen of this kingdom, and the generals of this kingdom know only twenty percent of the history. The same applies to the queens and generals of the other kingdoms. We only know that much. The man who started the war five hundred years ago was not a noble; he was a commoner."
Ashoka said, "Mom, what does that mean? Aren't only nobles allowed to become kings? And even if he was a commoner, why did he start a war?"
Ashoka's mom said, "I don't know the full history, but five hundred years ago, magic existed in this world. Even then, only some people had talent for magic. At that time, in one of the Ten Kingdoms, there was a king who possessed fire magic. However, that king was originally a commoner because the former king had no son, so he adopted a boy after discovering that he possessed magical power."
"But that was the biggest mistake of his life. The boy was a commoner, and he knew how nobles treated commoners like dogs. He wanted all commoners to become superior to nobles. However, the former king refused his proposal because he was a noble. He told him, 'Don't talk foolish things. From now on, you are a noble, so forget about those lowly commoners.'"
"But the next day, the former king was dead, and his face was burned."
"After the death of the former king, the boy became the next king, and then the disaster began. After becoming king, he revealed his magical power to the people of his kingdom. There was no one who had the power to defeat him."
"Afterward, he declared that commoners would hold authority over nobles. Commoners were very happy to hear his decision, but he did not realize what kind of massacre and war would begin because of it."
"He wanted to rule the world and grant that power to every commoner in the world. Then he started a war against a neighboring kingdom called the Kingdom of Wind. Using his fire power, he won that war."
"On that day, he began his campaign against the other kingdoms to rule the world. However, he forgot that he was not the only one who possessed magical power. Some people from other kingdoms also had magical abilities, and eventually, they defeated him."
"But even after his defeat, the war did not stop. The war continued because the kings of the other kingdoms now wanted to rule the world as well. Due to the prolonged war and the overuse of magic, magic eventually became extinct in this world."
Then Ashoka's mom stopped speaking.
Ashoka said, "Mom, what does that mean? What happened after his defeat? Is he still alive? Who were those other people who had magical power? What was the name of that kingdom? Who was that commoner who started the war? And most importantly, who is that eleventh person?"
Ashoka's mom said, "Stop, stop. Didn't I tell you that I only know twenty percent of the history? This is all I know. The full history is passed down only to kings. Even this twenty percent of history is known only by queens and generals."
Ashoka said, "But why only you and the generals?"
Ashoka's mom said, "Because I am the king's wife, and the generals have the power to command the kingdom's army."
Then Ashoka's mom said, "Now go, Ashoka. Get some rest in your room and stop having those childish dreams of ruling the world."
Ashoka said, "Yes."
Then he went to his room to rest, but his mom called him back and said, "You wanted to know the name of that kingdom? That kingdom was the Kingdom of Flame."
Ashoka said, "Thank you, Mom."
However, he was shocked. He suddenly realized that the Kingdom of Flame ranked tenth among the Ten Kingdoms in terms of military power and wisdom.
He returned to his room. After taking a bath and changing his clothes, he sat down on his bed.
Ashoka's thoughts:
"It has been twelve years since I reincarnated into this world. In my previous life, I was a king who almost ruled the entire world, but because of my low magical power, I was killed by my own subordinate."
"I almost escaped his Wind Cutter attack, but then he stabbed his sword into my neck, and I died."
"But there is still hope. When I reincarnated into this world, I thought God had given me another chance to fulfill my dream of ruling the world."
"Thankfully, in this world, magic is extinct. But I didn't know that magic existed five hundred years ago."
"What is the truth behind that history? I want to know what happened after his defeat, who those other magical people were, and most importantly, who that eleventh person is."
While Ashoka was thinking about that mysterious person, an eagle suddenly appeared at his window.
Ashoka opened the window and noticed a letter attached to the eagle's leg. He removed it and read it.
Then he said, "So, it's from my personal assassin, John."
John was a former assassin who was now thirty years old.
One day, when Ashoka attended a royal party, he noticed John serving food to the nobles. Ashoka observed the way John held a knife and immediately recognized it as the style of an assassin.
In his previous life, Ashoka had a subordinate who was also an assassin and eventually betrayed him.
While gathering information about this world, Ashoka realized he needed an assassin because an assassin's information was rarely wrong.
Back then, Ashoka approached John and said, "Your way of holding a knife is very stylish."
John replied, "Thanks."
Ashoka said, "Do you want to work for me?"
John replied, "No. I receive a very good salary here."
Ashoka smiled and said, "I'll pay you ten times more."
John was shocked. The knife slipped from his hand.
After drinking a glass of water, he asked, "How do you know about my work as an assassin?"
Ashoka replied, "It's very simple. The way you hold a knife reveals everything."
John said, "Impressive. But I don't want to return to that life."
Ashoka replied, "Oh? Do you think I want to hire you to kill people? No, no. I want you to gather information about this world."
John asked, "What do you mean by information?"
Ashoka replied, "If you want to know what I mean, contact me after the party."
John asked, "How?"
Ashoka smiled and said, "Do I really need to tell an assassin how we can meet?"
In the present, Ashoka finished reading the letter and said, "So that is how this world is structured."
There are Ten Kingdoms, and each kingdom has its own rank.
NUMBER 1 = KINGDOM OF TIME
NUMBER 2 = KINGDOM OF NATURE
NUMBER 3 = KINGDOM OF POWER (MY KINGDOM)
NUMBER 4 = KINGDOM OF WISDOM
NUMBER 5 = KINGDOM OF ICE
NUMBER 6 = KINGDOM OF ROCK
NUMBER 7 = KINGDOM OF WIND
NUMBER 8 = KINGDOM OF LIGHT
NUMBER 9 = KINGDOM OF WATER
NUMBER 10 = KINGDOM OF FLAME
"Okay, so there are ten kingdoms and these are their names."
"But what is written in this last line?"
Ashoka read the final line of the letter. He fell to the ground in shock and said,
"What does this mean? Isn't magic extinct? What does it mean that all ten kings possess their own magical power?"
Ashoka took a deep breath, stood up, and said,
"So, I have to defeat the other nine kingdoms to rule the world."
"This is not an ordinary war."
"It is a WAR OF THRONES."