The son of the God-Emperor in Warhammer Fantasy

The Riksguard, as Emperor Karl-Franz's final line of defense, have always been the most elite of the Imperial guard units. Although they do not possess the reputation or size of the three great knightly orders of the Old World, their combat effectiveness is formidable. Since its inception, the Riksguard has served as the emperor's personal guard, always fighting alongside him and bringing countless glorious victories to the Empire.

Unlike many knightly orders, the Riksguard recruits exclusively from the children of the Empire's great nobility, including the Electors' offspring, and even allows relatives and locals from the Riksguard, and new recruits from Bretonnia, Tilea, Estalia, and the Border Princes.

The sole requirement for recruitment is that the candidates must come from a family of military nobility.

Wagner Schmidt is such a recruit. This 24-year-old from Nuln hails from a family that has served the Brescian Electorate, holders of the Bernadino dynasty. His father, Baron Alberto Schmidt, is a master engineer at the Nuln Gunnery School. Thanks to his family's legacy, Wagner secured a spot to train with the Riksguard.

Young Wagner, with his brown hair and sturdy face, sports a bit of a beard, perhaps to make himself look older and avoid being underestimated due to his youth.

Looking around at the other new recruits:

- Rudolf Lichtenstein, the eldest son of the Duke of Lichtenstein family from Rikeland.

- Lehman Bachman, the legitimate heir of the Bachman Count family, also from Rikeland.

- Baron Theodricson, the direct grandson of the King of Nordland.

- Stefan Elkan, from Averland, son of Count Leitdorf, trusted general of Grand Duke Umberto Colleoni of Tuscany and Elector of Tuscany.

These individuals are particularly noticeable due to their lavish attire. They wear the finest silks and linens, and their mithril plate armor is enchanted by dwarfs and embedded with gold and jewels. Their colorful attire is bedecked with flamboyant plumes on their helmets, clearly indicating their high status and wealth.

Feeling the pressure, Wagner realizes the high nobility represented among the Riksguard recruits. Though his family is well-known in Nuln and holds some influence at court, it's only here in Brunswick that he grasps the truly noble origins of the Riksguard.

"Hey, Wagner, what are you daydreaming about?" A fellow young recruit nudged him, "Let's get inside. I don't want to start off on the wrong foot with Marshal Heilberg."

This was Lorenz, from Talabheim, one of the Empire's four major cities within the province of Talabecland. He and Wagner found they had much in common during their journey.

The recruits quickly formed cliques. Those from Rikeland naturally grouped together, as did the wealthy southerners of the Empire and the northerners. Wagner naturally joined the southern group.

"Here we go," Wagner muttered. "I heard Count Ryan is from Nordland but became the Chosen Champion of the Lady of the Lake?"

"Hey, keep it down, mate," Lorenz whispered, nodding towards Baron Theodricson, not far in front of them. The Nordland nobleman seemed to have a disdainful attitude towards Ryan. "He doesn't like hearing Ryan's name mentioned."

"I see," Wagner nodded, understanding that no one likes their thunder stolen. Baron Theodricson, young and famed, had numerous military achievements against barbarians but remained overshadowed by Ryan.

Riksguard Headquarters Castle, located in the southeastern part of Brunswick, features a dual-layered fortress. The outer wall stands thirty meters high, the inner fifty meters, adorned with the sigils of the iron cross, skull, and laurel. Upon Marshal Heilberg and the Riksguard's return, the gates opened wide to welcome them.

Wagner took a quick survey of the castle and murmured a series of numbers: "One hundred."

"What?" Lorenz didn't catch his meaning.

"One hundred men. One hundred well-trained soldiers could defend this castle and hold out for a long time," Wagner said, squinting.

"Maybe," Lorenz was non-committal, just reminding, "Stand up straight, Wagner."

Inside the great hall of Riksguard Headquarters Castle, Marshal Heilberg bellowed at the new recruits, "Silence, recruits! Listen up!"

"Yes, Marshal Heilberg!" The recruits snapped to attention, ready to hear the marshal's speech.

"Many of you come from different parts of the Old World, and I know you all have long family histories, tracing back to when Emperor Charlemagne established the Empire," Heilberg spoke gruffly.

R

udolf and Lehman instinctively shrank.

"Perhaps some of your fathers or grandfathers fought alongside Savior Ludwig in the Great Holy War."

Theodricson and Stefan shook their heads uneasily.

"Or maybe, some of you are just here to train and not truly inclined to become a Riksguard."

Wagner smiled wryly at this.

"Alright, you all come from glorious families with great ancestors, or possess vast wealth and lands. Maybe five years ago, none of you knew what a 'Heilberg' was... Sounds like a new fruit pie invented by a Halfling chef in Moot?" Heilberg continued sternly.

Laughter broke out among the thirty-plus recruits, but Heilberg wasn't bothered and continued sternly: "But now, I am the Riksmarshal, and I don't care how much influence your families have in the Imperial Court, how many gold marks are in your treasuries, or how many military honors your ancestors accumulated. None of that counts here!"

"If your families sent you to me, it's my duty to train you well, although I think some of you are too weak, some too stupid, some... too flashy. I'm talking about you, Steiner. I can smell your perfume from dozens of men away!" Marshal Heilberg glared at a recruit standing in a corner.

Steiner von Beckhafen, from Ostmark, blushed with embarrassment upon hearing Heilberg's rebuke. The young man felt aggrieved but knew that being dismissed by the marshal would bring great shame to his family.

Fortunately, Heilberg didn't dwell on it: "Alright, recruits, let's begin!"

"Today's first lesson is the history of the Riksguard."

...

At the Imperial Royal Hotel's dining room that evening, Ryan sat at a long table, discussing with Sulia, Sylvia, and across him, Veronica and Teresa. "After Emperor Leopold Franz Friedrich took the throne, troubled by the Griffon Knights' independence due to the privileges granted by Emperor Ludwig, he established the Riksguard."

"It was a highly effective move. As the Franz family's private army, the Riksguard has always been the most trusted guard and elite force for the emperors. Noble offspring provide excellent manpower, the royal armory supplies the finest equipment, and service in the Riksguard secures these nobles far greater career prospects. The emperor clearly prefers to promote those who have served in the Riksguard to important positions."

"It's a bit like a selection process, similar to how nobles in the kingdom send their children to the capital to serve as ranger knights for the Knight King, vying for a chance to become kingdom knights," Sulia remarked.

As they were about to continue, a peculiar voice interrupted from nearby: "Oh, what do we have here? If it isn't the little pup from Nordland, the Lady's little champion. Clinging to the pointed ears and now strutting around as the emperor's honored guest?"

Ryan, unangered by the comment, stood up respectfully: "Good evening, Elector Beckhafen."

"Hmph!" The tall man, with a long goatee and not yet thirty but with a face marked by scars and a large hooked nose, wore expensive silk and eyed Ryan and the women at the table disdainfully before extending his hand: "You should learn to be thankful and appreciative, Ryan Macado. My disdain for chaos beasts and greenskins far exceeds my disdain for you."

"Ah, you needn't be like this, Herr Hertwig," Ryan replied coolly, shaking hands, "You could send your champions to duel with me. In these dark times, we can speak with our fists."

Wolfram Hertwig, the Speaker of the Ostmark League and Elector of Beckhafen, was the first Elector to arrive.

Ostmark's politics are governed by a council. Five hundred years ago, a twin-tailed comet devastated the capital Mordheim, killing all its nobility and the Elector family. The surviving nobles formed the Ostmark League and moved the capital to Beckhafen. Since then, the Electorate of Ostmark has been elected by the nobility.

Hertwig's most famous tale is known as "Hertwig's Folly."

When young and noble Elector Hertwig took his title in his teens, during the Black Road War against the Beastmen, confident in his elite troops, he refused strategic advice from the Grand Master of the Knights of the Eternal Light. The knights withdrew in displeasure, leaving Hertwig and his army to fight without knightly support.

Ultimately, Hertwig and his forces still won, but at the cost of over ten thousand lives, turning him into a laughingstock of the Empire. For many years, Ostmark had to swallow its pride and seek military support from other Imperial provinces.

However, Hertwig learned

 from this and grew into a fine general. More importantly, he believes "the justice of the nobility is not the justice of the commoners," thus favoring the interests of the peasantry over the nobility, earning the love of the province's farmers and freemen. In recent years, life in Ostmark has been good, with people loving their lives, horses, and vodka, firmly believing a united human league and empire are stronger than a divided one.

"My champions aren't as capable as you, otherwise I would have sent them to make you understand!" Wolfram Hertwig retorted ungraciously.

Elector Hertwig and Ryan shook hands, with Hertwig exerting extra force.

Ryan quickly countered, squeezing the elector's bones until they cracked.

"Ouch!" The Elector winced in pain, struggling to free his hand before storming off with his entourage.

"He doesn't seem to like you," Teresa whispered after Ryan sat down. "He seems to resent you, only coming up to greet you begrudgingly because you're a human hero."

"I can't be liked by everyone; there will always be those who admire you and those who despise you," Ryan replied with a wry smile. "Except for gold marks, no one can win everyone's favor."

Sulia and Veronica couldn't help but laugh, and Teresa's initial concern was dispelled. She chuckled, "Then you'll have to try to win over the majority."

"I can only try my best, even if I killed Red-eye Egil. Getting all the provinces of the Empire to like me is still impossible," Ryan said, noting Hertwig's party being served food far across the room. "Not all the Imperial provinces face the threat of northern barbarians. For example, the eastern provinces are more troubled by Beastmen and greenskins from the Badlands. Tigris's proposal won't appeal to them... unless the High Elves agree to help them against threats from within their territories."

"Tigris only brought five hundred troops..." Sulia started to say something more when a group entered the dining hall.

It was the Riksguard recruits they had seen earlier, many of whom were staying at the Royal Hotel.

Having finished their meal, Ryan and his group stood up. He nodded politely to the young recruits, leading his companions out.

"There goes Ryan Macado, the human hero who killed Red-eye Egil," Lorenz told Wagner. "He's here with the High Elves, supposedly planning to unite with the Empire against Chaos."

"Ryan Macado... that's none of my concern," Wagner shook his head, dismissing the topic. "Let's eat something first. The Imperial Council meets in a few days, and whether to agree to the alliance is up to the Emperor."

"By the way, Duke Wissen and Elector Jani will also be here for the Imperial Council," Lorenz changed the subject upon seeing Wagner's disinterest, pointing out Hertwig sitting nearby.

"No! I will never acknowledge Jani as Elector!" Wagner exclaimed angrily.

"My family and I, we only pledge loyalty to Almanzor!"

...Asking for your votes!

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