"Following the fierce battle with the Tarasco Royal Army, it was quite gruesome. Most of the over 3,000 captives were injured. After sacrificing the more severely wounded, only 2,000 were incorporated. After conquering the Capital City, nearly 15,000 surrendered troops were assimilated, half of whom were common folks from the Tekos Tribe. Adding the surrendered towns in the Lake Region, that totaled 30,000 surrendered troops."
At this point, Xiulote sighed.
"These 30,000 surrendered troops can also be considered as the able-bodied men of the Prepetcha people. In the fiefdom areas I control, Qinchongcan City has 60,000 civilians, of which 20,000 are able-bodied. Along the lake, there are only over a hundred thousand elderly and frail. The northern part of Lake Patzcuaro is in ruins, only the western part of the lake area is slightly better, and by my estimate, there are about a hundred thousand people, around ten thousand able-bodied. Whereas the southern part of Lake Patzcuaro is a bit better, mainly the intact state of Apachigan, but I estimate it’s also no more than two hundred thousand people, forty thousand able-bodied."
"Aweit, I haven’t had the chance to sort out the south. Although the state of Apachigan has already surrendered, it still largely maintains autonomy... Roughly speaking, you have given me such a large fiefdom, yet there are fewer than five hundred thousand people, a hundred thousand able-bodied. And truly under my control, there are only about three hundred thousand people, sixty thousand able-bodied."
Upon hearing Xiulote’s grievances, Aweit could not help but chuckle. He reached out to the young monarch’s head, and Xiulote instinctively tried to dodge but then stopped himself. Aweit gripped the youth’s hair then again smiled.
"Xiulote, three hundred thousand people, sixty thousand able-bodied, what else could you possibly be unsatisfied with? When the twenty thousand surrendered militia arrive, you will have eighty thousand able-bodied, most of whom are warriors experienced in combat! In the west of this realm, you will not encounter any rival!"
At this, Aweit’s gaze grew profound. He continued to smile as he spoke.
"My intelligence officer has already given me a report. The fief of Tepopolo in Apachigan has a sparse population, dense forests, merely seventy to eighty thousand people. And Iskali’s Xitaqualo, with its rugged terrain and rolling hills, has also only sixty to seventy thousand people. As for the southern copper mountain region of the Alsace River, Weytamo... although the area is vast and has over a hundred thousand inhabitants, the mountain people have always been fierce and difficult to manage, and the terrain fragmented and broken, nowhere near as good as yours!"
Listening to Aweit’s description, Xiulote quickly updated the map in his mind with the demographic situations of the surrounding areas. These figures, although roughly estimated and even reliant on the number of Samurai and salt consumption, were rare secrets of the age. In the entire realm, only the Mexica King, who valued intelligence and had many scouts, could understand the conditions of each state in detail.
It was a good while before Xiulote finally let out a sigh.
"Your Majesty, I am already very satisfied with my current fiefdom... It’s just that I feel somewhat emotional. You gave me the essence of the Tarasco Kingdom, the entire Patzcuaro Lake region. Just a few years ago, even last year, this place had a population of a million, two to three hundred thousand able-bodied. Yet within just a year of great war, the population has halved, and six out of ten able-bodied men have perished. If it continues for another two years... the brutality of the western conquest, the difficulty of the Alliance’s victory, it’s clear from here!"
At these words, Aweit paused. He turned his back, walking to the balcony, gazing out over the vast lands to the east. The smoking peaks of the Divine Mountain seemed within reach, and the mountain fortresses of Xitaqualo resurfaced in his mind.
"Indeed, crossing hundreds of mountains, flying over hundreds of miles of forests, the golden eagles and red hawks battle to the death, such is the hardship of the western conquest!"
"This past year of warfare, the Southern Army lost nearly 15,000 Samurai, over 20,000 militia. Nearly forty thousand warriors perished in the lands around the lake, needing years, perhaps a decade, to recuperate fully. And the consumption of hundreds of thousands of catties of provisions has completely emptied the capital’s storehouses, pushing the tribute demands to their limits. It will take years to accumulate sufficient food and supplies again!"
"A monarch’s ambition flies high like an eagle, yet his gaze fixed upon the entire realm. However, neither people nor food can grow overnight, leaving only the passage of time, as the mighty eagle ages in vain!"
Aweit looked at the soaring eagles in the distant sky, exhaled deeply, and slowly shook his head.
At these words, Xiulote fell silent. He resumed scrutinizing the fresh red markings in his carry-on booklet, and after a while, he too sighed.
"The casualties of the Northern Legion were also severe. Over the year, despite my advantage in weapons and my efforts to catch the enemy off guard in field battles, we still lost ten thousand Samurai, seven thousand Militia, and had many wounded. I called up many Otomi Warriors and Canine Descendants as Mercenaries, and I used them on the frontline of the siege, thus minimizing the casualties of the Mexica warriors..."
"After this Western Campaign, the military strength of the Alliance was reduced by a full quarter, and the direct forces of the Royal Family suffered even greater losses. Indeed, we cannot launch a major military campaign again for several years. The Tarasco Kingdom has already been annihilated by the Alliance, and my next focus is to integrate and assimilate the Prepetcha people."
Hearing this, Aweit nodded. He turned his body to look at the hall of the Palace of Wind, where a mural was yet to be covered. The Divine Eagle soared in the sky, accompanied by Hummingbirds on both sides. On the ground, a group of people came from the northwest along the river, settled by the lake, built houses and towns, and their tribes flourished and expanded. And on the eastern side of the mural, the sun was slowly rising.
"The painting is quite good! The painter’s skill is exquisite, no less than that of the Lake Capital City."
King Aweit laughed in admiration and then spoke somberly.
"Xiulote, my student, you have done well! The Chichimeca Canine Descendants of the north have already moved south on a large scale, and the northern Tekos Tribe is also causing trouble. The Chapala Lake Region has already suffered heavy losses, and with the casualties of the Western Campaign, the population will probably be halved. I have already received their Messenger. The new Feather Prince intends to submit to the Alliance and will soon send delegates to present gifts."
"Feather Prince Pengguari? The one I dealt with? He’s sending people to present gifts?"
Xiulote remembered encountering the swift-as-wind Feather Marshal and was slightly surprised.
"Yes, he is quite a character! After the defeat in the battle with the Northern Army, he successfully led the main force of his family back and still holds the Silver Family Head. In less than half a year, he purified the Sky Family, married the legitimate daughter of the Silver Family, and then unified the entire Chapala Lake Region, proclaiming himself as a Prince and claiming to be a descendant of the Divine Eagle."
At the mention of the Divine Eagle’s descendant, Aweit laughed once more.
"Now, Pengguari essentially inherits the legacy of the Tarasco Kingdom in the northwest. He controls three hundred thousand people, sixty to seventy thousand able-bodied, with the administrative center in Tzitzapan, still five hundred miles away from Qinchongcan Capital and even further from the Lake Capital City. In the short term, the Alliance has neither the desire nor the resources to launch another large-scale, long-distance campaign, so we naturally accepted his submission."
Aweit’s eyes shone like burning flames. He looked at Xiulote, his expression now serious.
"Xiulote, my student! The Tlaxcala Wolfhounds are barking in the east, and I will not linger here long. I will return to the East in the coming days, but let me speak a few last words to you."
"This Western Campaign resulted in the population of the Tarasco Kingdom, originally over 1.6 million, being reduced to about one million. These six hundred thousand skeletons are the price paid for the rise of the Sun God! Groups not under the control of the Alliance, no matter how many die or are injured, need not concern us. The common people will always grow back like weeds. It is only the lands and lakes that are the foundation of everything!"
"You should patiently recuperate for a few years, win over the hearts of the Lake Region people, and train the able-bodied Prepetcha. Then take control of the south’s Apachigan, and campaign against the west’s Saka and the further west Chapala Lake Region. To the southwest, there are still many Tekos Tribes and the Colima Mountain Region you constantly think of."
"Xiulote, after I return to the East, the issues in the west are yours to handle. Whether to subdue or conciliate the various factions is up to your decision. I just want peace in the west, so it doesn’t affect the Texcoco Lake District. After a few more years of accumulating provisions and training a new batch of warriors, the time will come for a thorough resolution with the people of Tlaxcala!"
The long wind blew, lifting the black hair of the Kings and revealing their ambitious, dark eyes. The wind chimes at the top of the Palace of Wind swayed in the wind, ringing with a clear sound, bearing witness.