Tyranny of Steel

Shortly after Berengar's declaration of war, Itami received news of her own troops' misdeeds. Just as Borneo was about to fall into her hands, her soldiers had killed a group of German scouts, and in doing so, brought war upon her empire.

Naturally, the albino beauty was suspicious of the circumstances. From what she had been told, the German soldiers were equipped in Majapahit pattern uniforms, and had painted their skin in a woodland camouflaged. It was almost as if Germany was deliberately baiting her troops to attack.

Itami would not put it past her rival to stage a false flag like this. She just couldn't understand why he would sacrifice a national war hero in the process. The Japanese Empress would never know that the sacrificial lambs were all terminally ill soldiers who died in service of their country in exchange for having their families looked after by the state.

None of that was important at this moment, though. What she needed to do was address her Empire, and because of this, Itami was currently dressed in her most militant attire, while having her makeup done by a team of professionals. After they were sure that their Empress looked ferocious. Itami stepped forth onto the balcony of her royal palace and addressed the gathered soldiers with a stern expression on her otherwise beautiful face.

"By now, I'm sure many of you have heard the news... The German Empire has declared war on our mighty nation. In doing so, they have brought upon themselves the wrath of the Japanese people! We will face this horde of western barbarian's head on, and we will do so with the utmost ferocity!

The Kaiser claims that we do not understand war the way the Germans do however; he is sorely mistaken. For in the beating hearts of every Japanese citizen, there is a soul of a warrior! So, soldiers of Japan, show your unwavering determination to these foreign invaders as you step forward and defend your Empire!

As of this moment, every man and boy who is capable of bearing arms is hereby conscripted into the Japanese Armed Forces. For everyone else, you will dedicate your lives during the duration of this conflict to manufacturing the supplies and equipment necessary to continue this fight for our very survival!

We will not be bowed, we will not be broken, and we will continue on as the world's mightiest Empire! Tennoheika Banzai!"

With the closing of her speech, the final words that Itami spoke were repeated back to her by the tens of thousands of young men who had gathered for the sake of her response to the German Empire.

"Tennoheika Banzai!"

After hearing this, Itami smiled before returning inside her palace, where she was quick to meet with her Generals and Admirals, who stood at the ready in her war room, waiting to report on their enemies' movements.

"Tennoheika-sama, the German Empire, has already deployed their troops to the Pacific. I am afraid to say that we are facing a far greater invasion than we first expected. From their base in Singapore, the Germans have sent a fleet of warships towards Borneo, and the Philippines, with the intent to liberate the two regions. They are being backed by the entire might of the Majapahit Royal Army. We estimate that within the next two weeks, a total of two hundred thousand troops will be deployed to the area.

While at the same time, our borders with the Joseon Dynasty have utterly collapsed. It would appear that a combined force of German and Joseon troops have marched south with the intent of liberating the territory which we have conquered. An estimated one hundred thousand troops have been mobilized for this invasion, which is mostly composed Joseon soldiers.

We have begun deploying three divisions' worth of the units who have previously been tasked with protecting the homeland to reinforce our troops stationed on the Korean Peninsula. Along with another five divisions to the Philippines and Borneo."

Itami nodded her head in agreement with these deployments, before staring at the General directly in the eyes. Her chilling voice echoed in the otherwise silent room.

"As of this moment, we are at war with the most powerful enemy we have ever faced. We must give everything we have to defeat the German Empire, or else, I fear it will be the end of Japan as we know it. Let it be known that right now none of you are fighting for my sake, rather for the sake of your entire race and culture! So any of you who have had mutinous thoughts in the past, I implore you to focus on what matters, and that is the survival of your homeland!"

All the Generals in the room steeled their resolve after hearing such a speech. In the past, many of the men in this room had conspired in their own minds against Itami, however at this moment such thoughts had suddenly disappeared, instead replaced with the utmost loyalty. If not for the empress, then for Japan itself.

Very quickly, the Japanese Generals began to counter the German deployments, as one admiral began to speak of his own plan to defeat the German Fleet, which was being sent to support the invasions of Borneo and the Philippines.

"I am not afraid of the German Navy. I will personally embark with my fleet to intercept their position before they reach Borneo. However, might I suggest sending two fleets so that we outnumber the Germans?"

Itami silently nodded in agreement with the Admiral's request, which caused the man to salute her, before departing from the room so that he could begin his deployment. As for the rest of the high-ranking officers, they each voiced their plans about how they would proceed with the war effort. Among these men was a rather rotund air force General who was quick to speak about his particular field.

"Tenno-Heika sama, it would be most wise to begin the deployment of our warplanes stationed in the Philippines and Borneo to intercept the Luftwaffe. If we allow the Germans to assume Air Superiority over the region, the conflict will be lost before it can truly begin!"

Itami once more nodded her head in silence towards the General's suggestion, which caused him to bark commands at a nearby comms operator. Who relayed the General's message to the troops stationed in the affected regions.

There was just one thing which worried Itami, and that was the fact that she knew the Germans had colonized Australia. Perhaps a second fleet was heading towards Japan itself, which would be disastrous if she could not intercept it. Thus, she gave an order that her admiralty thought was peculiar.

"Ensure that there is at least one fleet protecting the mainland from German forces."

The moment after she said this, Itami noticed the frowns on the faces of her Admirals who wanted to deploy their full naval might to the Philippines, expecting it to be the major zone of conflict. However, when Itami saw these reactions, she scowled before reminding them whose orders they followed.

"Do I need to remind you where your loyalties lie? It seems you have all forgotten that we have previously made contact with the German Navy in the region I have referred to as Australia. Perhaps they have a fleet located there, which is heading towards our homes as we speak. We can't afford to deploy all of our naval forces to the Philippines. If we are left unprotected here in Japan, then the war is as good as over!"

After being reminded about the German forces in Australia, the Admirals looked ashamed, as they found themselves in agreement with Itami's course of actions. The Japanese mainland could not afford to be invaded by a German expeditionary force. Not while the rest of their empire was burning in the flames of war.

Thus, the Empire of Japan had begun to counter their enemy's movements, while the Germans themselves had gone on the attack.