War of 505

The War of 505 refers to the conflict between the Kingdom of Marlon, Beelzenian Empire, and Asmodean in the titular year EC 505. Taking course over several months, the fighting was an outbreak of preexisting tensions in the Evillious Region as well as a pretext for the expansion of Marlon's Imperialist Regime.

Origins
Following the revolution in the Kingdom of Lucifenia, the territory was annexed by the Kingdom of Marlon by the decree of its king, Kyle Marlon, to serve as a temporary government for the weakened country. Some time later, King Kyle was told by the new Marlon Head of Espionage, Ney Futapie, that the leader of the Lucifenian Resistance, Germaine Avadonia, was the one responsible for Michaela's death during the Green Hunting. In response, Kyle sent out a Witch Hunt order on Germaine, coming into conflict with her associates in the process.

In EC 501, the conflict would be exacerbated by Kyle claiming Lucifenia as an official territory of Marlon. When the Lucifenian Resistance opposed such policies, they were declared enemies of the state. The Resistance was initially able to gain the upper hand against the former Lucifenian military, capturing Retasan Fortress as well as Breck Mountain during their struggle. During this time, Kyle included the former Lucifenian court mage Elluka and Gumillia, the court mage of Beelzenia, in the Witch Hunt.

Commander Liliane Mouchet soon devised a means to counter the Lucifenian Resistance, and Restasan Fortress was recaptured for the Kingdom of Marlon; as a result, the members of the Resistance fled to Beelzenia. When in response Marlon ordered Beelzenia to surrender the troops, the Emperor of Beelzenia was advised by Gumillia to act against this order. In addition, tensions already existed between Beelzenia and former Lucifenia due to the former's lands being plundered by the latter in the Asmo-Beelzenian War; this grudge extended to Marlon after Lucifenia's annexation, and the Empire ultimately refused to surrender the criminals as a result. Due to this, Retasan Fortress became increasingly restricted in allowing passage between countries and a war was predicted on both sides.

Armistice and Invasion
The Lucifenian Resistance was incorporated into Beelzenia's army; in EC 504, Chartette Langley and Germaine Avadonia entered Beelzenia and the former was appointed captain of the Resistance, now named the Langley Troops, to replace the injured former commander. In EC 505, Marlon ordered an invasion force into Asmodean.

During this time, Ney was appointed the new Commander of Retesan Fortress, as well as being given use of the Glass of Conchita; she was then sent to infiltrate Beelzenia in preparation for a first strike. Using the glass, Ney raised an army of undead from the Empire's own cemetaries, using the bodies of soldiers and former Emperor that had died from the Goula Disease. Using these hoardes of undead, Ney officially declared the armistice between Marlon and Beelzenia annulled and directed her troops in an assault on Rockbane, as well as other areas in the region. In response, the Emperor of Beelzenia declared an emergency state and put the Imperial City on lockdown, while the Langley troops were deployed to defend the Empire.

Over the next several days the Langley Troops attempted to eradicate the undead soldiers in Rockbane. In the course of the assault, the former Retasan commander Liliane defected to Beelzenia and aided in their defense, defeating the head of the undead army and bringing its head to the Beelzenian Emperor. After meeting with Liliane, the Emperor declared his intentions to start a counterattack on Retasan Fortress.

Counterattack
Twenty thousand Beelzenian soldiers were divided into four divisions for the attack; three were sent to raid Retesan, and the fourth was sent to surround the fortress after the defeat of its soldiers. While Ney requested reinforcements, only a scant three thousand were sent due to both the reluctance of former Lucifenian generals and the delay of troops returning from Asmodean. Due to the advantage of numbers for Beelzenia and the geographical advantages for Retasan, the two armies became locked in a stalemate.

In an effort to break this stalemate, a second strike was planned on the fortress. Under Germaine's advisement, the Langley troops were made to repair their weapons and conduct nightly raids on Retasan, as well as spread rumors to sow chaos through the Marlon army. When Ney attempted to raise more undead soldiers as a defense, the chaos only increased, and the army suffered significant setbacks. In addition, during this attack, the Marlon army also faced an assault from Eastern Asmodean, which was suppressed by the General George Ausdin. Due to this, the fortress was almost completely regained by Beelzenia over the course of several days and Ney retreated to Lucifenia.

Continuation and End
After the defeat at Retasan, Marlon troops were instructed to continue to fight in the region while forces returned from Asmodean. After their return, the rest of the troops were intended to regroup and invade Beelzenia en masse, taking the country by storm and claiming it as a Marlon territory. From there, King Kyle intended to conquer the weakened Asmodean and the rest of the Evillious region, taking it all for his imperialist rule.

Though this fighting continued for a short time, King Kyle's plan was ultimately discarded after he was purged of the Demon of Vanity and the Marlon soldiers were repelled from both countries.

Aftermath
After the war was put to an end, King Kyle abdicated the throne and his country's imperialist agenda halted with him. Lucifenia's former sovereignty was restored, while the Kingdom of Marlon came under the rule of Kyle's half-brother, Arkatoir Marlon.

Civilian Perception
Aside from the Lucifenian Resistance, many among the former Lucifenian military expressed disapproval over Marlon's imperialist policies both before and during the war, many deciding to rebel against their new superiors as a result. The citizens of Retasan Fortress, as well, expressed dissatisfaction with their constant change in government. Kyle's abdication was thus seen by many as, partially, a result of his tyranny; many of the events during and directly following the war were left unknown to the general public.

During the initial invasion into Beelzenia, many became afraid of Ney's mastery over the undead, some citizens experiencing great distress over seeing their reanimated loved ones and soldiers unsure of how exactly to deal with the threat. Due to the conflict, both Beelzenia and Asmodean experienced increased resentment towards Marlon, tensions building between the three countries.

Conceptualization and Origins

 * The War of 505 and its related motivations may draw inspiration from British imperialism, characterized by extensive global colonization and competition with other European countries.