Tyranny of Steel

Itami sat at the table and munched on a piece of takoyaki. She had a bottle of sake in one hand and chopsticks in the other. The Ming Prince noticed that the woman appeared to enjoy drinking, and because of that, he encouraged her to drink more, hoping she would get drunk and make it easy for him to take advantage of her. 

However, Itami was a rare breed, and much like Berengar, was capable of drinking excessive quantities of alcohol without ever getting drunk. Thus, as the two of them drank, it was the Prince Zhu Li who ended up getting intoxicated. 

The man had reddened cheeks as he gulped down more sake, while eating from a bowl of ramen and a plate of takoyaki. His lust filled gaze was becoming more and more noticeable as he stared at the cleavage shown through Itami's tang-style hanfu. Itami noticed this and commented on it. 

"I can see you staring at my chest. I hate to break it to you, but I have made a vow to the gods that I will only give my body to the man who can best me on the field of battle. Better man than you have tried, and they now lie dead, each and every one of them."

It took a moment for the man to understand what Itami had said, but he immediately became offended when he did. The prince stood up from his spot, nearly knocking over his drink as he did so, and gazed down upon Itami with an air of superiority. Unknowingly, he played right into Itami's hands as he did this.

"You think you are so much better than me? I am a Prince of the mighty Ming Dynasty. My family's power is so great that even you have to pay tribute to my father in order to get his permission to invade one of our other tributaries."

Itami did not let the insult get to her, technically what the man said was true, but that was not because she could not defeat the Ming in a war, but with her population she could never draft the forces required to hold on to the territory of the Ming Dynasty. It was simply too troublesome for her to bother with. Thus, she responded with a genuine question.

"And what was your father's response?"

The intoxicated Prince did not realize that Itami was coaxing him into giving him the answer that she was looking for from the beginning of their conversation. One that he held close to his chest so that he could manipulate the woman into sleeping with him. Because of this, he acted high and mighty, as if he was bestowing Itami with the greatest gift in the world. 

"My father thanks you for your tribute, and rewards you by giving granting you the privilege of invading Joseon!"

Itami smiled when she heard this and nodded her head before dismissing the Prince entirely.

"Good, then it appears our business is concluded and I must bid you farewell. I shall permit you to stay in one of the many inns within the city, however based upon your openly lecherous gaze, I cannot in good conscience allow you to stay under my roof. Who knows what you might try in your intoxicated state?"

It took a moment for the prince to realize just what he had done, and what Itami's words meant. When he finally understood them, he was enraged, going so far as to raise his hand against Itami. Luckily, before a major international incident could occur, one of the other diplomats who was seated at the table grabbed the prince's hand and led him away, while bidding Itami farewell.

"We thank the honorable empress for her hospitality. I believe your words are wise and true. Our prince has shamelessly drank too much of this wonderful sake, and it would be best for everyone if we stayed in an inn." 

The Prince glared daggers at the diplomat, but the man did not yield, instead he gave a stern gaze back to the young man. It was clear who was actually supposed to be in charge of this delegation by the look on the diplomat's face. 

After saying that, the delegation bowed before Itami before walking out of her palace. After the prince was gone, Itami sighed heavily and gazed off into the distance, thinking about the vow she had made when she was young.

A year after Itami reincarnated into this world, she was met with a troublesome situation. She had gained wealth and power for her clan, and as a response, the Ashikaga shogunate had sent a representative to claim her family's land. In truth, the man in charge of this army had one look at Itami and tried to force himself upon her. She killed him with his own tanto before he could get the chance.

The result was a battle with the Ashikaga forces that claimed the life of her father. Despite this setback, Itami rallied her clan's forces and, with the power of the arkebuse, annihilated the Shogun's army. While on the battlefield covered in the blood of her enemies, she made a solemn vow to the gods that she would only allow the man who could best her on the field of battle to claim her virtue. 

Since then, she had never lost a battle and killed all of her pursuers in combat. She lamented the fact that she was twenty years old and still single. Itami sighed heavily once more before she took another drink and muttered something under her breath in an alien language that her followers could not understand.

"It is starting to look like I am going to be a virgin until the day I die, just like my last life." 

Just like in her past life, Itami had monumental standards, and was not afraid to stay single until she found the right man. She was prepared to give herself to Julian, but he was as dense as a neutron star, and never noticed her feelings before he died in Afghanistan.

It took Ai some time to get over the loss of her first love, but after a while, her family pressured her to move on, and she ended up getting romantically involved with a high-ranking officer in the Army. However, that relationship lasted for a few weeks, before rumors spread, and a stalker killed her in cold blood out of jealousy.

The irony of it all was she had not even slept with her boyfriend before she was murdered. Though the man had pressured her into doing so, she stubbornly refused until he could prove that he was a reliable partner who would not cheat on her. 

She did not know what happened in that world after her death, but the way global affairs were going, it wasn't looking good. She supposed she was better off reincarnating in a world where she could make genuine change, rather than living her life as another cog in the machine. While Itami was entertaining these thoughts, General Shiba approached her and informed her of the delegates arrival at the inn.

"Itami-sama. The Ming Delegates have arrived at the inn. We have guards posted to ensure that the Imperial Prince doesn't act up. What are your orders?"

Itami scoffed when she heard this before swallowing down the rest of the bottle. After doing so, she handed it to Shiba, which was her way of ordering him to throw it in the trash before she would answer his question. After the man had obediently done as instructed Itami responded to him with a stoic expression on her face. 

"If that idiot dares to approach the Royal Palace in the night, shoot him."

  General Shiba sighed as he heard this before nodding his head. 

"As you wish, Itami-sama..."

Just when the man was about to leave, Itami thought of something important, and quickly grabbed hold of his wrist before inquiring about the subject in her mind. 

"Shiba-kun, have you by any chance heard more about that strange power in the west who is producing those advanced weapons?" 

Shiba instantly froze in his spot, for whatever reason Itami seemed to be intensely interested in this topic, and had sent out many agents to India, specifically the Anangpur Empire, to inquire about this foreign power.

Though these agents had not been able to confirm the information they were given, Shiba had received some news. Due to the lack of verification, he was hesitant to inform the young Empress about it. However, since she was now directly asking him about this topic, he would not hide what he had heard from her. 

"I've only heard unconfirmed rumors..." 

Itami wore a bright smile when she heard this before nodding her head in excitement.

"That's fine, just tell me what you have heard!"

Shiba sighed before continuing his train of thought. The way the Empress was dressed, and the pretty smile on her face was so charming, he had no choice but to do as she asked. 

"They say a large and powerful Empire manufactured the weapons in the far west. This Empire goes by the name of Germany. More commonly, it is referred to simply as the Reich."

Itami was confused when she heard this, and instantly inquired further about this information.

"Germany? Is this western Empire known officially as the Holy Roman Empire, by any chance?"

Shiba gazed at Itami in confusion. He did not know what this Holy Roman Empire was, or where she heard the term, but the man quickly shook his head before correcting her.

"No, not at all. Supposedly, it is known officially as the German Empire, and is ruled by a man named Berengar von Kufstein. He is said to be the man responsible for uniting the German Empire, as well as the person behind the development of such weapons. Apparently, he was born the son of a minor nobleman and rose through the ranks by emerging victorious in a series of military campaigns. They say he has never lost a single battle.

Another unconfirmed rumor is that he has taken in the exiled Emperor of Anangpur and his little sister. Apparently he is protecting them from their uncle, who is the current self proclaimed Emperor of the Anangpur Empire. If this is true, then perhaps the Kaiser has ambitions in India."

It shocked Itami to hear all of this. Not only was the name Berengar von Kufstein completely alien to her, but so was the house which he hailed from. She did not know where Kufstein was, but from her extensive conversations with Julian in her past life about German history, she could surmise that it was a location where this emperor's family originated. 

The rise of a German Empire so early in history, and the fact that a minor nobleman with such advanced weapons unified it, could only mean that this Berengar von Kufstein was another reincarnator. This information, if true, confirmed her suspicions about Germany being a major player in this world. 

Though she didn't know the exact level of the Reich's military capabilities, or the extent of the Empire, she feared that, given enough time, the two civilizations would inevitably clash. If that were true, then she needed to be prepared for when the time came. After hearing this, a grim expression formed on Itami's pretty face and she quickly thanked Shiba for the information he had provided her. 

"Thank you Shiba-Kun, I need some time to reflect on this news. If you excuse me, I am going to go take a bath. In the meantime, I want you to continue to dig up any information you can on this German Empire, and it's Kaiser. The next time you receive information about this topic, report it to me right away, even if you can't verify it." 

After saying this, Itami walked off, and headed towards her personal hot springs. She did not wait for a response from her General as the existence of this German Emperor deeply troubled her. If this man was really like her, then she needed to be prepared for the war that was to come.

After all, she shared the same mindset as Berengar. There can only be one reincarnator in this world. The existence of another was a threat to her own existence. Thus, Itami debated internally as she stepped into the hot springs about the best strategy to combat this external threat.