[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-reborn-king":3,"chapter-the-reborn-king-the-reborn-king-chapter-438":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","The Reborn King",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":20,"prevChapterSlug":21,"totalChapters":22,"novelImage":23},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":16,"volume":17,"translator":18,"content_hash":19},1101045,1437,"Chapter 438: Side Story 4: Sasha’s Return to the Empire","the-reborn-king-chapter-438",438,"\u003Cp>Waverly Dock was bustling with life as the ship Sasha had left on pulled up towards the dock. Catherine stood with a small smile, seeing her daughter return as she held her Grandson, Lawrence Hardly. The young child had turned one and, with a set of thin brown hair, looked a lot like Marcus.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The ship slowly docked, and the crew solely disembarked. Sasha walked straight over to her mother and son, taking a deep breath of the air. \"Mother.\" Walking over, she held her hand out to take Lawrence and hugged Catherine. \"How have you been?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Busy.\" Catherine sighed and grabbed Sasha’s arm, walking along the port with her, \"I have been able to split my work and take care of Lawrence, but I’m getting old. It doesn’t help that William will send me messages telling me about his retirement.\" Sasha rolled her eyes at he mother’s blatant attempt to get pity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Has Marcus been coming?\" Sasha asked, looking down at her son. The young boy stared up at her, and although they had been separated whilst Sasha was out of the Empire, the young child recognised his mother, cuddling closer to her, not caring about the slight stench that came off her uniform.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"When he is free, he will see the boy, but his role keeps him away.\" Catherine sighed. Looking at her grandson, she felt slight pity for him. Both his parents were too entrenched in their roles and ambitions. Despite the pity, it gave her motivation to stay around for as long as she could, to give the boy a stable parental figure when the two parents couldn’t.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It’s good he even comes. If only Marcus still had parents or siblings. They could have helped.\" Sasha sighed but shook her head, \"Enough about this, my trip was amazing, Mother. Tralon is quite unique.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I’ve heard about it from the traders that come here, but I’ve never been.\" Catherine smiled, \"Is it true they still have rampant slavery, however?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Yes. We are lucky that the barbarians in the forest don’t attack us so often. I only learnt it is because they assaulted the Tralon and Zoran Kingdoms. Whilst they do enslave their own people, they mainly consist of barbarians they capture.\" Sasha shook her head, \"But it was the food. I thought we understood fish, but over there, the fish dishes they have are truly sublime. I have tempted a few chefs I liked to come over and serve us. They will come in the next few months. Please treat them well.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I’m glad you enjoyed it.\" Although she may not have loved that Sasha was someone who enjoyed the sea more than her future role as Duchess, seeing her daughter so happy about seeing the new culture, Catherine couldn’t help but smile.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It has got me excited for the future. Tralon is still a part of the continent, so it wasn’t all new.\" Sasha smiled widely as she looked to the sky, \"It has me so excited, Mother. Thinking about what might exist across the ocean. I can’t even imagine the beauty of what I will see. The differences in our lives. I can’t sleep properly thinking about it. Even if those unknown lands are only filled with barbarians, they must at least have different foods, animals, and landscapes.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Calm down, Sasha.\" Catherine softly spoke, \"How was your mission? Did you achieve what His Majesty wanted, or did you forget and take a holiday?\" Sasha smirked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Of course, I got what he wanted. It wasn’t even hard to get the things. But I know that wasn’t all His Majesty wanted. I managed to get in touch with the Tralon King as a foreign diplomat. Luckily, the Godwin name was known enough after all the trade our Duchy and their Kingdom have done.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"And?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I negotiated a small trade deal in exchange for the best equipment they had. Like I said, it was easy to get hold of the things I needed, but that was for the common sailor. The things the Tralon Royal Family had were much better. I’ll make the plans to send it to His Majesty for him to see. In exchange, I promised to waive all taxes they must pay to buy and sell in the Godwin Duchy for the next two years. An envoy will come over to sort out the details. After that, let’s hope relations improve.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Sasha. Are you stupid?\" Catherine nearly shouted, but remembering her station kept her voice low. \"What were you...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Mother, you’re too fixed in your ways. You haven’t been to Tralon. Did you know over a year, four months are focused on defending their borders from Barbarians, instead of fishing and farming. It means the Kingdom rarely has a surplus of food and is susceptible to drought, famine, or large changes in migration and breeding seasons.\" Sasha calmly explained, \"Now, I know we lose out on that income, but why don’t we horde goods and sell when the taxes are dropped. Instead of spreading across the coast, Tralon will prefer to trade in the Godwin duchy alone. We can make up for the loss of revenue by doing more business.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Catherine looked at Sasha and sighed. \"If they decide to. If they don’t, we will suffer a loss.\" Grabbing her forehead, Catherine shook her head, \"You will be Duchess soon enough. I’ll see this as you preparing for the role. Any good or bad that comes from it will be burdened by you, however.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That is fine, Mother. I expected nothing less.\" Catherine sighed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You should head to Brookhaven. His Majesty is making weird things again. I have been writing to the Empress, and she says that it’s something you will want to see.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Oh.\" Sasha smiled, always excited to see what new things Alfred would make or do. \"Do you have any idea?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Maybe. The fact that she doesn’t dare write it in letters either means I wouldn’t understand, or that it can’t risk being leaked. I do know he has been making a new weapon from the little I could gather, but that’s about it. Go yourself and take Lawrence with you. Spend time with the boy.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Okay, Mother.\" Kissing her cheek, Catherine looked at her daughter and proudly smiled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Good. Also, Marcus should be in Brookhaven. Try for a daughter when you have time. William has been bragging about his granddaughter for too long now.\" Sasha’s face flushed with embarrassment, making Catherine chuckle.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>-------------------------\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Sasha.\" Isra happily ran over to Sasha and gave her a welcoming hug. Sasha returned, not wishing to embarrass the Empress. Looking behind her friend, Isra laid eyes on Lawrence and sweetly smiled. Going to the boy, she poked his chubby cheek and giggled. \"He really does look like Marcus. Only cuter.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Mother will complain that he doesn’t look like me, but secretly adores him.\" The two walked down the Palace halls, with Isra taking the young Lawrence from the nanny who held him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"How was your journey?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Quick. Luckily, this one doesn’t get restless when travelling, or it would have been much longer.\" Isra softly chuckled as they approached the garden entrance. Stepping outside, the two walked through the large garden of the Palace, enjoying the blooming flowers. A rainbow of colours spread far with workers happily working.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Walking to a small gazebo, Sebastian waited, pouring tea for the two and readying small desserts. Passing Lawrence over to Sasha, the two sat down and waved away all the servants, Sasha’s included, leaving only them and Sebastian behind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"A new butler?\" Looking at the middle-aged man, Sasha asked in surprise.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"After the incident with Edward, Alfred saw fit to have someone new brought in. It has been a short time, but Sebastian has proven himself to be great. Whatever you wish to ask or say, you may do so in front of him.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sasha picked up the tea and took a small sip. Her mouth melted, forgetting the taste after being away from the Empire, \"I’ll be brief then. What is this thing you were talking about with Mother?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Ahh.\" Isra paused and picked up her own glass. Taking a small sip, she smiled, \"The reason we sent you to Tralon was to buy time and also have you think we weren’t playing you around. We needed the things they had, but they weren’t vital. Forgive me for the deceit.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sasha’s mouth went agape. Staring at Isra, she fixed her appearance and sighed, \"It’s fine. I quite enjoyed my time over there. So what is it?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"A weapon. At first, Alfred had made one that was meant for each person in the military, but he quickly realised there was an easier thing to make in the meantime. Something that can be attached to ships, city walls or dragged into battle.\" Isra smiled and took a sip of her tea, \"He calls a cannon.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"A cannon?\" Sasha tried to think of what it could be, but quickly gave up, \"Will it be useful?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"More than you think, Sasha. Alfred called himself an idiot for not thinking of it sooner. I’ll keep it brief, as I’m not an expert on the subject, but it will change naval combat forever. To the point you will never have to board an enemy ship again to take it.\" Isra chuckled, \"Anyway, Alfred will let you know when it’s finished and we have enough. He expects you to attach them to every warship in the future.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sasha was stunned but chuckled. \"If that is what he wishes.\" Her words got quiet as she spoke. Looking at each other, Sasha dropped the serious attitude she put on when they started talking business and smiled like a friend, \"Enough business. What have I missed?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Isra picked up a small bite that had been prepared and dropped her own serious attitude, \"A lot....\"\u003C\u002Fp>",1646,"2026-06-03T11:17:48.775Z","2026-06-03T11:17:51.401Z",1,"novelbin.me","d120836588806d7181d72e27cc479b827b9f5a61926d333c006f2a0b3e6cd0ed","the-reborn-king-chapter-439","the-reborn-king-chapter-437",487,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-reborn-king-cover.jpg"]