Moving South of Annihilation.

The Empire recovered from the harsh wounds the brutal winter had scratched as Emperor Sophien turned the historical disaster into an opportunity.

She distinguished between the dead and the living. The dead were old, and the living were young. The old died because they were weak, but the youth lived because they too were weak. The old chose their death, and the youth gained life through that sacrifice.

Emperor Sophien deliberately persuaded them to die. The elderly who were seriously injured or unable to move were left without treatment. Instead, she saved those who were still young and healthy. The elders gladly accepted. In any case, their death was beneficial to the Empire, both in the short and long term. There were fewer mouths to feed, so she acted on reason, not emotion. At least Sophien thought so.

That was the start.

Restoration of the peoples livelihood that the migration had destroyed began. The villages and slums naturally collapsed, so they were all incorporated into Imperial land. The Emperor pursued thorough and planned development referencing the efficient city model of the Principality of Yuren. Unlike other high-minded servants, she didnt despise it, saying it belonged only to the Principality, but openly accepted it.

As a result, Sophien corrected the confusion in just three months. At the same time, she cracked down on the Empires internal politics, strengthening Imperial power and reforming social structures.