Chapter 55

The battle between the revolutionary army and the Eldorado Kingdom's guard and mercenary forces was intense. However, the revolutionary army, with their high morale, had the upper hand and quickly reached the main gate of the royal capital.

It was only a matter of time before it was breached.

In the royal castle, the first prince, Lotus, gathered the royal guards and was preparing to flee.

"Hurry up!"

"Your Highness, but what about Her Majesty the Queen, your mother?"

"I don't care! I'm more important than her!"

Recently, Lotus had been quite unruly. The Eldorado Kingdom's government had suffered consecutive defeats, and the royal family's credibility had plummeted. The position of the first prince, which had relatively high authority, was now nothing more than a facade.

Many nobles had already defected, and the people no longer trusted the royal family.

To put it mildly, the royal family was in decline. Moreover, Lotus's tyranny had reached a point where even his subordinates were beginning to think they could no longer follow him.

"Hurry up! What are you doing?"

Lotus shouted at the guards who had stopped and looked hesitant.

However, out of the eight guards, six pointed their spears at Lotus.

"What... What are you doing! This is disrespectful. Do you know who I am!"

The remaining two guards quickly moved to protect Lotus, but they were knocked down by the butt of the spears. The leader of the guards whispered to Lotus.

"We can no longer follow you. Your recent tyranny is no longer tolerable. You regularly use violence against servants and squander the country's wealth like a pig. We can no longer serve you."

"What!?"

"We have pledged our loyalty to the third prince, Reinwald. Please surrender quietly."

"Ridiculous... This is betrayal!"

"You are wrong. You betrayed us first, Prince Lotus."

The guards immediately tried to apprehend Lotus.

However, Lotus was still a prince. He had a defensive magical artifact for emergencies, one that emitted a blinding flash of light.

Highly aggressive magical artifacts could be dangerous if misused, so this was the most suitable option.

"Uaaaaaah!"

While the guards were covering their eyes and screaming, Lotus escaped. He headed towards a secret escape route known only to the royal family. There was a keyhole behind a painting on a certain corridor, and by inserting the key he held, a hidden door would open, leading to an escape route that connected to the underground.

"Traitors..."

Lotus clenched his fists in frustration as he ran.

He was the first prince, and he believed that as long as he survived, he could do anything. After all, his younger brother and third prince, Reinwald, had managed to escape and achieve his goals. Lotus thought he could do the same.

However, the fact that no one was following him now made it difficult to compare him to Reinwald.

"First, I must... escape to the Great Empire!"

The Eldorado Kingdom was a vassal state of the Subarokia Great Empire. In the current situation, where the revolutionary army was taking over, the legitimate heir of the royal family, Lotus, would be considered valuable.

Lotus planned to seek asylum in the Great Empire. However, he was being naive.

"So, you came here, Lotus."

"Who's there...!"

A voice came from the darkness of the corridor, sounding exasperated. Lotus stopped and sharply responded.

Then, multiple people appeared from the other end of the corridor. Leading them was Reinwald.

"You! Reinwald!"

"It's been a while, Lotus... I mean, brother."

"Shut up, you traitor!"

Reinwald's subordinates, Rail and Leila, drew their swords in response to his words. Lotus, who was threatened with weapons, let out a scream.

"Ah..."

Reinwald calmed them down and spoke to Lotus again.

"Father... no, the king has already been captured. We infiltrated through the royal family's secret passage. Surrender quietly."

Reinwald's tone was now more commanding, as the revolutionary army had almost secured victory, and his forces had infiltrated the castle through a secret route to capture the royal family.

The victory of the revolutionary army was certain.

"I refuse! I will escape to the Great Empire and restore the legitimate royal family. Even if you are my blood brother, I cannot hand over the Eldorado Kingdom to a traitor like you—"

"Insolent!"

Leila thrust a short spear into Lotus's right leg. He screamed in pain, fell to the ground, and clutched his bleeding leg.

Reinwald sighed and reprimanded Leila.

"Calm down. We can't kill him here."

"But, Lord Reinwald. We can't let such an insolent person go unpunished."

"He is still my blood brother. I want to end this with a dignified execution."

"...Understood. I apologize."

Leila immediately bowed her head. Then, Rail approached Lotus and provided him with basic medical treatment.

"With this, the royal castle is under our control. We will head to the throne and take command of all the subordinates. Let's go."

"Hai!"

On that day, the revolutionary army became the legitimate rulers of the Eldorado Kingdom, no longer a rebel organization.

◆◆◆

"Your Majesty, let's end today's work here. Leila, can you bring some tea?"

"Sure. Leila, can you make some tea?"

"Understood."

A few months later, Reinwald was reigning as the new king of the Eldorado Kingdom. The revolutionary army had become the legitimate government.

However, the revolutionary army had not been dissolved.

"Our path has just begun. We must solidify our position. It will take time, but now is the time to endure."

"Are you talking to yourself?"

"Yes, I need to remind myself of what needs to be done. I can't afford to forget my purpose. My goal is not to become the king of the Eldorado Kingdom."

"To liberate the Eldorado Kingdom from the oppression of the Subarokia Great Empire, right?"

"Yes."

At that moment, Reinwald's aide, Rail, entered the office. He was now working as a bridge between Reinwald and the revolutionary army.

"Lord Rail, we have a report from the revolutionary army. We have started negotiations with the neighboring vassal states."

"Good!"

Reinwald stood up, pleased.

"We have taken the second step in our resistance against the Subarokia Great Empire. Well done, Rail."

"Yes, Lord Rail. On the day of the revolution, 'The Reaper' destroyed the Subarokia Great Empire's Shadow Legion. Thanks to that, the Subarokia Great Empire is overly cautious about the revolutionary army. The legions in the garrisons have returned to the homeland, leaving only the minimum forces. This makes it easier for the revolutionary army to operate in secret."

"Many vassal states suffer under the oppression of the Subarokia Great Empire. We will gradually gather supporters."

"Of course, Lord Rail... I mean, Your Majesty. Leave it to me."

"I'm counting on you."

Even after obtaining the Eldorado Kingdom, the activities of the revolutionary army did not end. Under the leadership of Reinwald, who was the shadow leader, they continued to operate under a new leader.

The will to rebel against the Subarokia Great Empire, a powerful empire with many magical knights and technology, was steadily spreading.

◆◆◆

Meanwhile, in the Subarokia Great Empire, confusion was spreading in some areas.

This was due to the death of Kruger Piel, who held the rank of S-class magical knight and the emblem of the Golden Lion, known as 'The Shadow.' He was considered a prodigy, almost on par with a general. The loss was immeasurable.

"Your Majesty, what should we do?"

"Be quiet. Show some respect. I am the emperor."

"It's just a meeting with childhood friends, right?"

"...This is still an official meeting. Show proper respect to the emperor, even if he is a childhood friend."

"Both points are valid, but that's not important right now, is it?"

Five people were seated around a round table.

The most luxurious chair was occupied by Gias Syltart Murjif Barat Noaz Subarokia, the emperor of the Subarokia Great Empire. The other four seats were occupied by the heads of the four great ducal families, who held power second only to the emperor.

The Subarokia Great Empire had four great ducal families at the top: the Noaz, Istar, Sauz, and Vest families. Historically, the emperor was chosen from these four families.

The current emperor, Gias Syltart Murjif Barat Noaz Subarokia, was chosen from the Noaz family. The current head of the Noaz family was a cousin of the emperor, which was why they were so familiar.

"So, Your Majesty, how do we fill the gap left by 'The Shadow'?"

"Yes. As Sauz said, we need to act quickly. The information delay is a serious issue, even if it's a matter of a vassal state in the eastern region."

Incidentally, in this meeting, they addressed each other by their surnames.

The children of the four great ducal families received a name from each of the four families at birth. To maintain equality, they called each other by their surnames. In personal relationships, they used the name given by their own family.

For example, the emperor used the name Gias.

"Istar, the information you gathered. Can you provide more details?"

"Sure. Unfortunately, I don't have much detailed information. It seems that the Black Cat is involved..."

"The Black Cat, huh."

"Troublesome. It's difficult to trace underground organizations."

"Yes. It seems that 'The Reaper' killed 'The Shadow.'"

"Surprising. I didn't think he was the type to be killed by an assassin..."

"I heard it was a rather flashy death... I doubt it was really 'The Reaper's' doing."

An S-class magical knight possessed such power that it was hard to believe even a famous assassin like 'The Reaper' could kill him. Moreover, there were signs of a frontal battle, not an assassination. The entire Shadow Legion had been wiped out, which made it hard to call it an assassination.

"Your Majesty, at the very least, something exists that can eliminate 'The Shadow' and the Shadow Legion. As a precaution, I have recalled the S-class magical knights in the vicinity. We need to share information and investigate what happened."

"That's a good idea. Vest, you have connections in the underground world. Find the Black Cat."

"Understood. I will do so."

The round table meeting between the emperor and the four great ducal families continued.

"Next, the next agenda item. It seems a rebellion is about to break out in one of the northern vassal states?"

"That's the report I submitted."

"Is that you, Noaz?"

"I have the detailed report. Please take a look."

◆◆◆

Shu Arclight and Iris were heading west, away from the Eldorado Kingdom. They were staying at an inn in a village they had stopped at along the way.

"Hmm?"

"What is it?"

"Nothing, just a moment."

Shu suddenly took out a coin of 'The Reaper.' One side had a cat holding a staff, and the other side had a skull and a knife. It was a symbol of being a member of the Black Cat, a notorious underground organization. The coin was vibrating, like a cell phone receiving a call.

"What is this..."

"This is a magical artifact. It's receiving magical energy."

"It's not for communication. It's a one-way message receiver."

The vibrating coin formed a magical array, which Shu read. He realized it was designed to receive messages. He had thought it was just a coin, but it was actually a magical artifact.

When the magical array finished forming, it displayed a message.

"Five years from now, in the sixth month, on the eleventh day, gather in the capital of the Subarokia Great Empire."

The moment he saw it, Shu remembered something.

"Hawk Eye mentioned that the executives have a duty to attend regular meetings."

"So, this is one of those meetings?"

"Seems so."

Shu took the 'The Reaper' coin and put it away.

"Five years is a long time, but it's probably the time needed to gather the executives from all over. For us, it's convenient. We'll head to the capital at a leisurely pace."

"Understood!"

"Our goal remains the same. The capital of the Subarokia Great Empire, Aldar."

This concludes Chapter 3 of the Ancient Era, "The Revolutionary Army." This chapter was heavily focused on setting up future events, so it might not have been as exciting. I will post Chapter 4 once it's completed. See you again!