Great General Tenjin was an old man, but there was no sign of him being sick or injured or having any complications that would lead to his death. He simply died peacefully in his sleep seemingly out of nowhere.
A grand funeral ceremony was held at the capital. The black stone of the Imperial Palace matched the black mourning apparel of the hundreds in attendance. It made it seem as if the palace itself was mourning the loss of the General.
Of course that wasn't the case. Most of the so called "mourners" in attendance had hearts that were as black and cold as the stones of the palace.
Despite the fact that he fought for the Empire for decades, most courtiers didn't care about a Great General once they were dead. After all, what benefit could they receive from showing respect to a dead man they all thought.
There were only a handful of people in attendance who truly cared about Tenjin's death. They included the few officers of Tenjin's army in attendance, and….
"Look at these people. None of them care about Old Man Tenjin at all. They're just here to pick at his corpse." Gaileo said.
"True, they just came to show their face and maybe get themselves on the good side of whoever is selected to replace Tenjin." Shion added. "Are you going to alright Gail?"
"Why wouldn't I be?"
"Well, Great General Tenjin was probably the closest thing to a father that you ever had."
"Tch, I have no idea what you're talking about. That's the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard." Gaileo said while noticeably not denying Shion's statement.
The ceremony came to a close with the Emperor himself making a few remarks.
"Tenjin had accomplished a great deal for the Empire, but he's dead now and a dead General is of no use to me." The Emperor said callously.
Gaileo gripped his fist so hard that his hand started to bleed.
"I need Generals who can restore my Empire to its former glory. That's why I'm announcing my replacement for Tenjin right here and now." The Emperor said.
This unexpected announcement caught the attention of every military officer in attendance as they knew that they were all candidates.
"Who's it going to be?" Many of them thought.
"Usually I would simply replace the deceased General with someone of my choosing. This time I decided to do something a little more fun." The Emperor said with a twisted smile on his face.
"That old monster, what is he talking about?" Gaileo thought.
"The next member of the Seven Great Generals will chosen by a Great General Selection Tournament!"
This announcement shocked the crowd, this was beyond unexpected. Even more so to announce such a thing at a funeral. Even so, the next question on everyone's mind is, who will participate in this tournament?
"The participants will be announced at a later date, I'd like to make it a surprise. Yes, that would be more fun wouldn't it?"
After the funeral ended, the Emperor ordered Gaileo to stay so he could speak to him a while.
"What do you want old man?" Gaileo asked.
"Oh ho, someone's in a bad mood. Are you going to cry your eyes out because Tenjin kicked the bucket?" The Emperor mockingly asked.
"Just get to the point." Gaileo said as he balled his fists again.
"Calm down young pup, I wanted to speak to you about this tournament that's coming up."
Gaileo paid close attention at those words. "Is he going to pick me to participate?" He thought.
"You aren't expecting me to pick you to participate, are you?"
"Why wouldn't you?"
"To put it simply, I don't think you have what it takes."
"What is your basis for that?"
"None of your business brat." Just as Gaileo was about to protest the Emperor interrupted him. "But. There is a way you could prove that you deserve to be there."
"Seriously? I haven't proven myself already?"
"Oh? And what makes you think that boy?"
"I've defeated great generals and conquered entire nations. Is that not enough?"
"Do you think that there aren't dozens of generals in this Empire that have done just as much if not more?"
The realization of that fact hit Gaileo like a tidal wave. He had the notion that he had been getting stronger, proving himself, but it didn't occur to him before that in this vast empire, that talented generals are a dime a dozen.
"Don't get misty eyed on me boy. I told you that I'll give you a shot at earning a place in the tournament."
"Fine, so what is it?"
The emperor holds up both of his decrepit hands. "Ten. I'll give you ten tasks. If you can complete them then I'll allow you to take the final spot in the Great General Selection tournament."