I Thought It Was Alternate History, but It Was a Civilization Game.
[Reborn Randomly.]
[Which country would you like to be reincarnated in?]
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A common,
truly common reincarnation roulette website.
Where do you want to be born in your next life?
It was a fantasy anyone would have indulged in at least once.
So, I carelessly clicked on the link to a website called 'Reborn Randomly' posted in the group chat.
[You have been reborn in the 'Turks'.]
-As the first equestrian people to unify the steppe, you are a descendant of the nomadic empire that led the fusion of the East and the West, backed by the overwhelming economic power of the Silk Road.
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Military Power Score: 85/100
Cultural Sphere Score: 52/100
Productivity Score: 28/100
Population Score: 45/100
Difficulty: High
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"...Turks? An equestrian people? Turkey..., no, does it mean Türkiye?"
The Turks.
Or Göktürks.
A nomadic people that existed from the 6th century to the mid-8th century.
As the first nomadic people to unify the steppe, the Turks threatened Chinese empires and achieved absolute rule and conquest, including dominating the Western Regions and the Silk Road. However, their dominion declined through repeated cycles of unification and division, and the descendants of the fallen Turks eventually migrated far to the west, laying the foundation for modern Türkiye and the Central Asian nations.
No,
wait a minute.
Setting aside the information about the Turks.
Reborn Randomly.
It was supposed to be a reincarnation limited to modern countries.
Why did the name of an equestrian people that seemed straight out of a historical drama or documentary pop up?
"So what the fuck is this? Did they post the wrong link?"
If one considered it not a reincarnation site limited to the 21st century, but one spanning any era, it made plenty of sense.
The Turks.
Dumbfounded that I had drawn such a completely unfamiliar reincarnation, I tossed my phone onto the bed.
Could there be any situation shittier than this?
No,
definitely not.
To be 『possessed』 into the body of a twelve-year-old child the very moment I threw my phone onto the bed.
The Turks.
It was just as drawn in Reborn Randomly.
"Ashina Barka.... Ashina Barka, huh...."
Barka.
His surname was Ashina.
The youngest son of the Great King who unified the vast steppe.
Not bad, right?
Though he was merely the youngest son with modest origins and influence, he was still the cute youngest child loved by his father and elders, so one could say he was born with a flashy gold spoon.... No, born with a sturdy and robust steppe spoon in his mouth.
"I'm fucked."
-Thinking so had been a delusion.
The youngest?
Loved and pampered by his father and the elders?
On the steppe, the youngest child was just a brat to be weeded out first.
Facing half-brothers who regarded those of their father's blood as nothing more than obstacles and rivals, I came to realize the cruelty of reality.
The joy of being relieved to possess the flesh and blood of a royal family ruling a vast territory was fleeting, and I had to witness the dysfunctional clown dance of violence and betrayal put on by the half-brothers of the Turkic royal family, all desperate to become the Great Khagan's successor.
"The one who inherited Father's blood first, the one who took the reins from Father first, and the one who swept through war with Father first is me! Naturally, I am the true successor!"
"Birth order does not determine everything. Have you forgotten that my maternal grandfather's tribe and iron cavalry were the most decisive help in Father unifying the steppe?"
"Hyung-nims are truly ignorant. The wealth to bestow upon warriors, the hay to feed the horses, and even the military expenditures needed for war.... My maternal uncle, the real power in the Western Regions, is Father's most favored patron."
Half-brothers blatantly exposing their ambition and hostility,
"How dare the bitches of baseborn tribes...! Once my son ascends to Great Khagan, I will slaughter every drop of the concubines' bloodlines and sever all future troubles!"
"Keep your mother's plea in mind. If you do not ascend to Great Khagan, all of us will die. Not just your in-laws..., but every single one of our backing forces.... The only way to survive is for you to become Great Khagan."
The principal wife and concubines doing whatever it took to seat their sons as Khagan.
14 sons.
10 daughters.
It was the fruitful result of the stamina recorded by the Great Khagan who ruled the steppe.
The succession of the Turkic royal family boasted extreme turmoil, mixing fraternal succession with patrilineal succession. On top of that, ultimogeniture—passing down the tribe and property to the youngest child—was thrown into the mix, ushering a horrifying storm of blood across the entire steppe.
"Seeing that a unified empire with an unheard-of name was founded in the Central Plains, I haven't simply possessed an alternate history work... could I have possessed an Oriental fantasy world? Barbarians from the north usually show up as third-rate villains, though."
The fourteenth son.
Maternal family: a frontier equestrian tribe.
Backing faction: none.
Full-blooded sibling: only one younger sister.
Literally the weakest small fry among small fries.
The moment the succession war of the steppe began, he was bound to meet an end worse than dog shit on the roadside. Knowing that, I desperately screamed at the top of my lungs, "Status window! Status window!", yet not a single anomaly occurred.
Not a shred of hope,
nor a shred of possibility.
While lamenting like that, just as I was preparing for the perils of the future──.
A curse of the steppe swept in, declaring that at the bottom of despair lay not hope, but only fresh despair.
"The successor..., to the..., to the strongest...."
Year 5 of Reincarnation.
Around the time I turned seventeen-.
The Great Khagan fell critically ill.
It was because of a poisoned arrow shot by an assassin while he was returning from suppressing a rebellion.
The arrow coated in deadly poison struck down the Great Khagan of the steppe. Thus, soaked in lethal venom throughout his entire body, the Great Khagan passed away after leaving behind the worst will that should never have been uttered.
"The steppe belongs to me, the eldest son!"
"All iron cavalry, strike Ötüken! I will kill Hyung-nim and succeed as Great Khagan!"
"If only I can become Great Khagan...! Even if I am branded with the dishonor of a traitor, I will slaughter all of you Hyung-nims!!"
Year 6 of Reincarnation.
Around the time I turned eighteen-.
The war of successors, packed tight with ambition and lust, began.
The eldest son enlisted the aid of retainers who had remained loyal to the royal family,
the second son led his maternal grandfather's forces and the mighty iron cavalry,
and the third son summoned outside tribes that had been banished by the Great Khagan back onto the steppe;
amidst such desperate turmoil, I narrowly escaped from the steppe by the skin of my teeth, taking my mother, my younger sister, and close aides from my maternal family with me.
"Spare me...! Spare me, Barka! Aren't we brothers born of the same father after all?!"
Year 8 of Reincarnation.
Around the time I turned twenty-.
I triumphed in the war against the tenth half-brother.
500 versus 2,000.
Leading the troops of my maternal family, I threw myself into the struggle.
Just as expected, the tenth half-brother, a complete amateur who had no clue about military strategy or tactics, screwed up the war magnificently.
"You bastard, you've been hiding your fangs and claws all this time!"
"To be stripped of all my troops by the likes of you... so futilely!"
"The Great Khagan definitely said it. That the steppe would be passed to the strongest successor.... Why wasn't it me, but you, the youngest bastard!"
Year 10 of Reincarnation.
Around the time I turned twenty-two-.
I hunted down and slaughtered the other half-brothers one by one.
Thus absorbing all the tribes scattered across the entire steppe, I emerged as a prominent successor.
"They're finally dead. Finally dead."
Year 12 of Reincarnation.
Around the time I turned twenty-four-.
In Ötüken, the capital and trading hub of the Turks, the Great Khagan's eldest son, second son, and third son, who had waged a muddy dogfight for a whopping six years, died one after another.
The eldest son was slain by the spears and swords of the iron cavalry.
The second son died at the hands of an assassin sent by the eldest son's retainer.
Due to his arrogant tyranny, the third son suffered execution by dismemberment, his limbs torn apart by the chieftains he himself had invited.
Done.
The time had finally come.
1st place,
as well as 2nd and 3rd place, were all eliminated at once.
Consequently, the imperial capital of the Great Khagan became a land without a master.
Leading all the subordinate tribes, I entered the imperial capital of the Great Khagan. And so that my poor hyung-nims who met unfortunate, untimely deaths would not be lonely, I slaughtered every single half-sibling who had been quietly breathing.
Older brothers,
older sisters, and younger sisters alike.
Without leaving a single one behind, I turned every half-sibling into crow food.
"Having inherited the principles of the Heavens, clutching the sun and the moon, and as the descendant of the great Ashina of the Golden Mountains and the Silver Wolf, stretching from the eastern seas to the western mountains, we beseech an audience with the Great Conqueror King of the Turks who shall pacify all under heaven brandishing the conqueror's spear, sword, and iron mace..., Great Khagan Ashina Barka!!"
Year 13 of Reincarnation.
Around the time I turned twenty-five-.
After murdering all my half-siblings, I ascended as the new Great Khagan of the steppe.
With the enthronement of Ashina's new Great Khagan, the tribes of the steppe surrendered resistance and dropped to their knees. And the external forces summoned by the third son were utterly destroyed in the name of Ashina.
The steppe was unified once more.
Subjugation was extracted from the numerous tribal kingdoms of the Western Regions.
And to hold in check the unified empire dominating the Central Plains, 200,000 cavalry were gathered at the Great Wall front.
"Truly the great Khagan of the steppe!"
"Glory to the Great Khagan, the foremost descendant of Ashina and the Silver Wolf!"
"Didn't the Empress of the unified empire tremble in fear and sue for peace? The young Great Khagan has already surpassed the previous Great Khagan!!"
Countless retainers sang praises.
Countless chieftains spared no acclaim.
Yet, having achieved the deeds granted to a Great King, a profound emptiness rushed in alongside the fierce sense of accomplishment. As if to fill that void to the brim, I began to feel an intense urge of 『wanderlust』 blowing in with the autumn wind.
"I shall leave the steppe to the feudatory kings loyal to the Ashina imperial household! We intend to take our elite royal cavalry, each worth a hundred men, and conquer the unknown domains!!"
I unilaterally dumped all the Great Khagan's authority onto the feudatory kings of the steppe. Then, ignoring all the shouts clearly laden with shock and bewilderment, I embarked on an expedition with no destination.
Westward.
Far,
further,
even further to the distant west.
Beyond the Western Regions.
And across Persia.
Passing through plateaus surrounded by steep precipices.
Overcoming deserts swept by murderous sandstorms.
"As the Great Khagan of the steppe, I command you! Burn down any city that refuses surrender, destroy any nation that refuses surrender, and you may kill every human being who refuses surrender!!"
It was clear this was not an alternate history world that had plummeted into a pre-medieval era. Because just like the unified empire of the Central Plains, the numerous kingdoms crushed under the hooves of the Turks bore names I had never heard of before.
If so,
what kind of world had I fallen into?
After various twists and turns, I had ascended as the Great King of the Turks. Yet, the clues to the questions and curiosity I had felt the moment I possessed the youngest son of the Ashina imperial family remained completely unraveled.
I wanted to know.
I desperately wanted to know.
Could the unknown truly be such a dreadful curse?
Under the pretext of wanderlust, I repeated expedition after expedition to relieve the futility and deprivation. And when I wiped out yet another kingdom I had never heard of before-.
I finally reached the bottom of truth.
[The great wind of the steppe has breathed its last.]
[The Karakur Sultanate has fallen.]
[The Turkic Khaganate is incorporated as a new faction contesting the Civilization Rate War.]
[Fame: +2490]
[Infamy: +1850]
[Numerous kings and nobles participating in the Civilization Rate War take notice of you, the Khagan of the Turkic Khaganate. All nations fear the unidentified faction that destroyed the Karakur Sultanate.]
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"...What?"
A vision seen for the first time.
A notification sound heard for the first time.
It was a turning point that helplessly shook the 13 years spent as a descendant of the Turks.