Emperor of Steel [EN]: Chapter 115

The Disaster of the Imperial Capital

1

The night was a canvas of deep darkness.

Figures moved stealthily toward Odessa, a border city of the Livia Kingdom.

They were mages cloaked in black robes and knights with soot-blackened faces.

They slipped past the city walls while the guards were momentarily distracted.

Mages, using Fly magic, lowered ropes, and the knights quickly scaled the walls.

They melted into the alleyways below, exchanging hand signals and glances as they moved.

They acted like a commando unit infiltrating enemy territory, but their target wasn’t the barracks or a military supply warehouse.

Following the maze-like alleys, they reached the most densely populated residential area. At the communal well in the center, they immediately began working while keeping watch.

‘Be careful! One mistake could mean death for all of us,’ a knight warned, watching as the mage took a vial from his pocket.

They were a commando unit from the Baroque Empire, tasked with spreading a plague in enemy territory.

Before their departure, they had been told of the vial’s terrifying power. It was said that even a whiff of the poison would cause a high fever, and within days, the victim would turn into a dried-up mummy and die.

‘I’m getting married next month. I don’t want to die horribly from some disease, so be careful,’ the knight said.

‘Heh heh heh. Don’t worry. I’ll handle it as safely as possible,’ the mage replied.

The mage, wearing leather gloves and a mask disinfected with a magical solution, skillfully prepared to open the vial.

Or rather, he was about to.

Swish— Thwack!

Suddenly, something leaped from the darkness and severed the mage’s right arm, sending the vial flying.

‘Kuaaaak!’

The mage’s desperate scream echoed through the quiet residential area.

The figure that had severed the mage’s arm snatched the falling vial and darted into the opposite alley.

‘W-Who was that?’

‘Quick, after him! Catch him!’

Thud!

The knight leading the chase suddenly stopped.

A dozen spear blades had sprung from the darkness, piercing him. He died instantly, without even a scream.

‘N-No way!’

While the commando unit panicked, the surroundings lit up brightly.

Magic lamps flashed everywhere, revealing hundreds of soldiers, knights, and monsters positioned in the alleyways and on the rooftops.

When had they set up such a siege?

As they looked around in disbelief, they heard a mocking laugh.

‘Heh heh heh. We’ve been eagerly waiting for you,’ a voice said with a sly smile. It was the one who had cut off the mage’s arm and snatched the vial.

‘Damn it, it’s a trap!’

The faces of the Baroque commando unit members turned pale. There was no escape.

They couldn’t believe what was happening. This operation was known to very few, and even among those who knew, many were against it. Emperor Rudolf had changed the date and the unit members several times.

How did the Livia Kingdom know?

Could someone have betrayed them?

Regardless, they were trapped. The operation was over. They had to escape the city and inform their superiors.

‘We’ll cover the rear! Mages, get out of here!’

‘Tch, sorry!’

The knights drew their swords and charged at the Livia Kingdom army.

Meanwhile, the mages used Fly magic to take to the sky or cloaked themselves with Invisibility magic.

‘They’re escaping! Catch them!’

The Livia Kingdom army, fully prepared, didn’t let the enemy commando unit escape easily.

The soldiers and knights, forming a battle line, struck down the commando unit members with spears and swords. Archers on the roofs sniped at the mages in the sky.

Even those wearing invisible cloaks were surrounded and torn apart by monsters with keen senses of smell.

‘Kuaaak!’

‘Damn it! You traitorous bastards!’

The Baroque Empire commando unit members fought to the end, but they all fell, their bodies rolling on the ground.

‘Your Majesty, we’ve captured all the spies from the Baroque Empire who infiltrated the border cities and fortresses,’ Mitchell, Shai Khan’s cousin, reported. Shai Khan, who had been working late, looked expectant.

‘Well done. What about the plague poison?’

‘All the vials have been safely recovered,’ Mitchell replied.

‘Heh heh heh. Good! Very good!’ Shai Khan smiled, pleased with the result.

‘It seems the information King Luke gave us was quite accurate.’

‘Yes, the field commanders’ reports show almost no errors. And after interrogating the prisoners, they had no idea the operation had been leaked.’

Shortly after Luke’s visit to make a treaty, the Symphonia intelligence department had handed over a top-secret document.

It detailed the time and place where the Baroque Empire would spread the plague poison.

Based on this, Shai Khan dispatched elite troops and successfully killed or captured all the Baroque commando unit members and seized the vials.

‘Then, all that’s left is the counterattack?’

‘Yes, we started the ‘Reaper’s Scythe’ operation at the same time as the seizure. The agents who received the vials are probably crossing the imperial border by now.’

As Mitchell said, agents skilled in special operations and infiltration were infiltrating the Baroque Empire to strike in the same way Rudolf had planned.

However, the Livia agents’ targets were not insignificant border fortresses or cities.

It was the imperial capital, Nemesis.

Shai Khan’s goal was to spread the plague in Nemesis and throw the empire into chaos.

‘Heh heh heh. Rudolf! I’ll return the gift you sent to you as it is, so try to receive it! Hah ha ha ha!’

Shai Khan looked up at the ceiling and burst into laughter, thrilled at the thought.

2

Nemesis, the capital of the Baroque Empire.

Due to the descent of a high-ranking demon and the aftermath of the civil war, the empire had lost its former glory, splitting into three pieces. Still, it was a large city with a population of over 2 million.

It was one of the most densely populated cities on the Rodisia continent.

While the inner city and the residential areas of the nobles had spacious mansions and large gardens, the streets of the outer city and the slums were often so crowded with commercial buildings and shacks that there was barely room to walk.

Two merchants with unusual eyes were moving through the streets of the outer city in a carriage.

They were the commando agents from the Livia Kingdom.

‘It seems the population has decreased a bit compared to before,’ the freckled young man said, looking around from the carriage. The middle-aged man with triangular eyes next to him replied,

‘Because of the high-ranking demon that appeared and caused chaos, many people died, and many others moved to other places to avoid the civil war. And Rudolf’s purge of the noble faction in the imperial capital is also a cause.’

The commoners behind their backs called the nobles ‘those born with a silver spoon in their mouths’ and sneered at them.

However, many made a living through the employment and spending of the nobles.

They worked as employees of noble families or businesses. Building or repairing the mansions where the nobles lived, making the clothes they wore, and cultivating and transporting food were all the responsibility of the commoners.

‘In other words, a significant number of people in the imperial capital are living based on the domestic market of the nobles. But Rudolf has destroyed that,’ the young man said.

‘Ah, so many people left the imperial capital because their livelihoods were cut off?’

‘That’s right. Because of that, public sentiment has deteriorated, but Emperor Rudolf doesn’t care.’

The people were dissatisfied, but they couldn’t express it.

They were afraid of the emperor’s madness that he had shown when he massacred the noble faction.

‘Still, not all of the emperor’s faction are fools, so they are trying to appease the people with various support projects and relief policies. Although it’s not very effective.’

‘Heh heh heh. If a plague spreads in such a situation, it will be quite a sight,’ the young man said, grinning. He soon became serious.

Soldiers were conducting an inspection ahead.

As the young man subtly reached for the dagger at his back, the middle-aged man quietly stopped him.

‘Relax your expression. That’s just a routine inspection to weed out spies trying to infiltrate the imperial capital.’

Immediately after the outbreak of the civil war, the Baroque imperial family was conducting frequent inspections and searches in the imperial capital to weed out any enemy spies.

‘Then, it has nothing to do with our mission?’

‘Heh heh. Those guys must believe that their operation was successful.’

In fact, the Livia Kingdom military deliberately made a fuss in the border area to deceive the Baroque Empire.

They sent healthy soldiers to treatment centers and dispatched priests and medical mages to the slums to carry out plague prevention work.

In addition, they spread false rumors that a strange disease was spreading in the Livia Kingdom by mobilizing spies who had infiltrated the empire.

‘Anyway, don’t be nervous. It’ll work out fine,’ the man said, reassuring the young man. He slowly stopped the carriage in front of the checkpoint.

He bowed and gave a servile smile to the officer who approached with the soldiers.

‘Hello, sir. What’s the matter?’

‘What do you mean, what’s the matter? I’m just going to do a quick search. First, show me your ID and pass,’ the stern-looking officer ordered.

The man took out a meticulously forged ID and pass from his pocket.

‘I’m in the business of supplying food to high-end restaurants in the imperial capital. It’s a place that caters to high-ranking nobles, so…’

The officer listened without paying much attention and looked over the ID and pass.

Not realizing they were forged, he spoke to his subordinates who were inspecting the goods in the carriage.

‘Is there anything suspicious?’

‘Well, there are vegetables such as greens and mushrooms, and the boxes with freezing magic contain only meat and fish.’

‘Tch, even during the war, the nobles are eating well.’

Although magical civilization had developed, the benefits were only enjoyed by wealthy nobles and merchants.

The commoner officers and soldiers, who couldn’t even dream of fresh meat and fish, couldn’t help but frown.

‘Wait, there are some bottles here,’ a soldier said, finding a wooden box containing glass bottles in the corner of the carriage.

The commando agents disguised as merchants couldn’t help but feel nervous.

What was in those glass bottles was the germ that would spread the plague.

The officer said with a cold gaze, ‘Hey, what is this? It’s not alcohol or potions, is it?’

Since the war broke out, the Baroque Empire had banned the manufacture and sale of alcohol and was exclusively selling potions from the state.

This was to prevent the waste of food by manufacturing alcohol and to secure as many potions as possible to treat soldiers.

Therefore, those who smuggled them were severely punished.

Of course, the Livia commando agents were aware of this.

‘No, sir. That’s a sauce used for cooking,’ the middle-aged man said.

‘Sauce? I’ve never heard of such a dark sauce,’ the officer replied, suspicion in his voice.

The middle-aged man calmly began to lie. ‘That’s soy sauce, imported from the Yemaek Kingdom in the far southern continent. They say it’s made by fermenting boiled beans in salt water.’

‘Ah, I’ve heard of it. I heard from my cousin who works at a high-end restaurant that it’s very salty. They say it’s amazing when used to grill meat,’ a soldier chimed in.

But the officer’s suspicion was not easily dispelled.

‘How does fermenting beans make it so dark?’

‘Well, maybe they used some kind of secret method… Oh dear! Don’t open the lid! It’s very expensive, and if the aroma flies away, it can’t be used!’

‘Is that true?’ the officer asked, looking at the subordinate who had chimed in earlier.

“Sauces are expensive because they’re made with all sorts of ingredients. And if it’s from the southern continent, it’ll be incredibly pricey. Maybe even the equivalent of the checkpoint commander’s annual salary…”

‘Tch, damn those nobles.’

The officer quickly placed the glass bottle back in its original spot.

Upon seeing this, the Duke’s agents inwardly breathed a sigh of relief.

They had heard a rough description of the plague. If the lid had been opened or the bottle had been broken, they would have faced a gruesome death.

“Pass. Go on.”

“Yes, thank you, sir.”

The agents, having successfully passed the checkpoint, arrived at the rendezvous point shortly after and handed over the plague-filled glass bottles to the spies who had infiltrated earlier.

“Be careful. If you don’t want to die, never open the lid carelessly.”

“Don’t worry. We’ve heard all about it.”

The agents, having completed their delivery, quickly left the scene.

The spies who received the items immediately moved to the crowded streets.

Although it was broad daylight, they judged it better than moving at night when patrols were heavy.

Moreover, there were many people coming and going during the day. That meant the plague could spread faster.

The spies secretly placed the glass bottles on the ground and left.

The glass bottles, kicked by passersby, were crushed under carriage wheels or shattered against the paving stones.

Some were picked up by curious pedestrians, and their lids were opened.

The spies, watching the scene from afar, nodded and quickly left the area.

They were now certain that the Grim Reaper would descend upon Nemesis.

3

“The movements of the Lybia Kingdom are unusual?”

At Emperor Rudolf’s question, Count Voltaire, who had just given the report, nodded.

“Yes, Your Majesty. A strange disease is spreading in the border area. It seems that the plague of Bers we spread earlier is having an effect.”

“Heh heh heh. It seems to have worked properly.”

In fact, before hearing the report, Rudolf had been worried that the operation might have failed.

This was because none of the agents who had been deployed had returned.

‘Hmm, perhaps they couldn’t return because they were exposed to the plague and collapsed. They said it was a very nasty disease.’

As Rudolf was thinking this, Voltaire spoke again.

“It’s said that even the border fortress’s forces are being mobilized, so it seems quite serious. Should we take this opportunity to subjugate them… but that would be impossible, wouldn’t it?”

“Of course. We don’t know if the disease will spread to our side, so order the border to be thoroughly controlled. Ah, if it hasn’t been revealed that it was our doing, send medicine and potions in my name.”

‘He’s trying to put on a show.’

Voltaire was well aware of Rudolf’s intentions.

When spreading the germs, Rudolf had said he would kill all the rebels, whether they were nobles or commoners, but as the situation became advantageous for him, he showed an attitude of using it to his benefit.

Perhaps when the Emperor’s relief supplies arrive, the people and nobles of Lybia suffering from the plague will be moved by his grace.

Of course, that’s only if they don’t know it was the Emperor’s doing.

“Anyway, can we just sit back and watch the situation now? No, Luke is still in the south.”

“Since the germs are still there, how about dealing with that side in the same way?”

At Voltaire’s suggestion, Rudolf shook his head.

“It would be too obvious. Let’s deal with the rebels in the south in a different way.”

It was then that he said that.

The door to the office burst open, and Marquis Kepler, the Meister [Master] of the Imperial Magic Tower, rushed in.

“Yo, Your Majesty! Something terrible has happened!”

“What is it that makes you so flustered!”

Rudolf, who had frowned, widened his eyes as he listened to Kepler’s story.

“Bers is spreading in the Imperial Capital.”

“Wh, what are you talking about! Why is it spreading in the Imperial Capital?”

The Emperor, who had jumped up from his seat, immediately grabbed Marquis Kepler by the collar.

Bers was clearly in the hands of the agents and headed for the Lybia Kingdom.

But suddenly, a plague was spreading in the Imperial Capital?

“Kehk! I, I don’t know the reason. We are checking if there is a magician who was infected in the process of extracting the plague and transferring it to the vials…”

“Enough! Is it certain that the disease spreading in the Imperial Capital is Bers?”

He asked, wondering if they had mistaken another plague for Bers.

However, Marquis Kepler nodded with a pale face.

“I, I am sorry to say, but judging from the high fever, symptoms, and the speed at which it is spreading, it is definitely Bers.”

“Damn it!”

Thud!

The Emperor, who had exploded in anger in an instant, slammed his fist on the table.

The solid marble table was shattered in an instant.

But that didn’t relieve his anger, and it certainly didn’t make the plague disappear.

Shortly after, urgent reports poured into the Imperial Palace.

Most of them were requests to take measures because a plague had broken out in certain areas of the Imperial Capital.

Rudolf, who had hastily summoned the officials of the Imperial Palace and the commanders of the military, sought countermeasures.

“We have currently sealed off the Imperial Palace and the inner castle, but given the speed at which the disease is spreading, we cannot be completely at ease. Therefore, Your Majesty, please evacuate outside the Imperial Capital as soon as possible to preserve your health.”

At the suggestion of the commander of the Imperial Guard, Rudolf bit his lip.

He didn’t like the situation where he had to run away without being able to do anything.

He felt even more repulsed by this sense of helplessness because he had felt it when he lost his children due to Arsen’s curse.

“If we leave it like this, the Imperial Capital will be annihilated. Is there no way to do anything?”

“I am sorry to say, but there is no cure for this disease…”

Kepler hesitated and stopped talking, looking at the situation.

This was because Rudolf was glaring at him with a terrifying gaze. And he was also gripping the hilt of his sword.

‘Tch, why did I suggest spreading the plague…!’

Kepler was deeply regretting it.

He didn’t know how this damned germ had leaked, but he shouldn’t have brought it up in the first place.

Anyway, if he said here that there was no solution, he felt like his head would be cut off immediately, so Marquis Kepler quickly presented an alternative.

“There is no cure, but there is a way to prevent its spread.”

“There is a way?”

“Yes, we must gather all the patients and those who have been in contact with them in one place and eradicate them.”

Eradication meant isolating or killing them all.

“Are you saying we should kill them all?”

At the question of the chamberlain, Count Voltaire, Kepler nodded.

“That’s the only way. We must kill them all and burn the patients and the areas where they were to completely eliminate the disease.”

According to Kepler’s findings, the only way to eliminate Bers was to burn it.

“Is there no other way? There are already thousands of patients identified… no, if we include those who have been in contact with the patients, there will be tens of thousands. Are you saying we should kill all those people?”

“Do you think I want to do this? If we make a mistake, the Imperial Capital and this Empire, no, the entire continent will be ruined!”

Bang! Bang! Bang!

As the Emperor banged on the table, Voltaire and Kepler, who had been arguing, shut their mouths.

Rudolf, who had silenced everyone, made a decision.

“We will follow Kepler’s plan. We will move the patients and those who have been in contact with them to the north of the Imperial Capital, and purify the affected areas by burning them.”

Instead of fleeing from the Imperial Capital, he decided to boldly sacrifice some of the people.

“Your Majesty!”

“This is too much!”

When some nobles, including Count Ferrero, tried to object, Rudolf glared fiercely and drew his sword.

“I will not allow any objections. If you don’t want to increase the number of sacrifices, move as quickly as possible!”

“…I will obey your command.”

The nobles, who had succumbed to the Emperor’s coercion, retreated from the main hall.

Many of them thought, ‘This is not right,’ but they all clenched their trembling hands and bit their lips without uttering their complaints.

4

“Evacuate the residents of the affected areas and burn them!”

“Hurry! We have to finish it by today!”

The soldiers, who had received the Emperor’s orders, identified the patients, their neighbors, and those who had set foot in the affected areas.

The people who were suddenly driven out were dumbfounded at the sight of their homes and property burning.

“What are you doing!”

“Stand back! This is the only way to eliminate the disease!”

“Even so, this is too…”

“It is the order of His Majesty the Emperor to punish those who do not comply as traitors.”

The people, who did not have the courage to stand against the army wielding spears and swords, moved to the northern streets of the Imperial Capital between the inner and outer walls, as the soldiers directed.

The places they had stepped on were immediately sprinkled with oil and purified by fire.

Shortly after, the people who arrived at the northern streets of the Imperial Capital wore a look of despair.

“Are we supposed to live here?”

“Oh my god, the future is bleak.”

The northern streets were severely damaged during the last rampage of the high-ranking demons, and the repairs were delayed due to the subsequent civil war.

As a result, most of the buildings were either skeletal or charred black.

“Damn it, they burned down our perfectly good houses and drove us into this ruin! How can there be such a law in the world! Is the Emperor everything?”

“Shh, lower your voice. The soldiers are watching.”

“Let’s find a place for the patients to stay first.”

The people who still had the strength found the relatively intact houses and moved the severely ill patients.

The knights and soldiers who had brought them to the northern streets kept a close watch to see if a riot would break out.

Meanwhile, the gates and paths leading to the northern streets were all closed by the Central Army and the Imperial Guard, and a large number of cannons were secretly placed on the walls and rooftops of buildings.

“What is this?”

Late at night, an officer in charge of the outer perimeter of the northern streets asked, pointing to the jars that had just been moved.

Then, the superior who had come to deliver them frowned and replied.

“It’s fierce fire oil. It’s what was left over from when we subjugated the rebels last time.”

“Ah, the one that makes fire burn even when it rains… But why did you bring that?”

At the officer’s question, the superior quietly told him the reason. The officer’s eyes widened in shock at his answer.

“Huh? What did you just say? Set fire to the northern streets?”

“Yes, there was an order from His Majesty the Emperor to incinerate all the patients.”

It wasn’t just the officer who was surprised.

The soldiers nearby were also shocked to hear the lieutenant’s words.

They were so surprised that some of them didn’t even realize that the spears they were holding had fallen to the ground.

The officer said with an incredulous face.

“Ha, but among the patients and those who have been in contact with them, there are many family members, relatives, and acquaintances of the soldiers. And there are also comrades who led them inside, how can we… ?”

Many of the Central Army officers and soldiers defending the Imperial Capital were from Nemesis.

Naturally, if they knew that an order to incinerate them had been issued, the unit would be turned upside down. No, a military rebellion might even break out.

At the officer’s concern, the lieutenant frowned and raised his voice.

“Then will you take responsibility if the plague spreads to the inner castle or other areas? It is His Majesty the Emperor’s intention to cut off the bud in the early stages, even if there are some sacrifices.”

The officer, who was a fervent supporter of the Emperor, could not make any further objections to the lieutenant’s stubbornness.

Frankly, he was also afraid of taking responsibility if he objected any further.

Shortly after, Emperor Rudolf’s order was issued to the entire Central Army that had been dispatched to the northern streets.

Some of the officers and soldiers who heard the order were aghast.

‘This is absurd! How could they do such a thing…’

‘Are they telling us to become murderers who kill innocent people?’

Despite his subordinates’ vehement protests, Duke Dirk, the vice-commander of the Central Army, didn’t even blink.

*Swish!*

He drew his sword, glaring fiercely as he issued a stern warning.

‘Anyone who disobeys this order, even slightly, will be executed on the spot for treason!’

His threat was not an empty one.

The Gigantes [Elite knights known for their immense size and strength] of the Imperial Knights were present, glaring at them.

In the end, the officers and soldiers had no choice but to swallow their bitter tears and obey the order.

‘Please, let my family not be there!’

‘God, please forgive us!’

Praying in their hearts and offering prayers of atonement, they loaded the jars of blazing oil into the mortars and fired them towards the northern streets.

*Boom! Boom!*

As hundreds of oil jars soaked the northern streets, archers who had been waiting fired flaming arrows.

Explosions erupted everywhere, and flames soared into the night sky.

As the unexpected bombardment struck in the middle of the night, the patients, those suspected of infection, and the soldiers who had escorted them were thrown into chaos.

‘What, what is this? Why the sudden shelling?’

‘More importantly, if we don’t put out the fire quickly…!’

*Whoosh!*

Nemesis had seen little rain recently, and the city was quite dry.

Amidst this, the blazing oil and flaming arrows rained down, and the fire quickly spread throughout the northern streets.

‘Aaaah! Fire!’

‘Help me!’

The patients, who had been tossing and turning in the unfamiliar environment and had finally fallen asleep, were startled by the sudden shelling and fire, and they ran out of their homes.

However, the streets were also ablaze.

The severely ill were engulfed in flames without a chance to escape, while the patients in relatively better condition, those suspected of infection, and the knights and soldiers who had escorted them were busy trying to flee.

‘Let’s go towards the city gate!’

‘That’s right! We’ll all burn to death if we stay here!’

People tried to escape the fire and leave the northern streets.

However, the city gate was locked from the outside, and the paths leading to other streets were also blocked by high barricades.

‘Open the gate!’

‘Cough! Cough! What are you doing! Open the gate!’

When there was no response from the outside, people panicked and were soon filled with anger.

‘Damn it, I knew it! They intend to kill us all!’

‘Open the gate, you bastards! I’m not sick!’

‘Everyone, instead of this, let’s break down the city gate!’

The still-healthy people brought axes and logs and began to batter the city gate and barricades.

The knights and soldiers who had escorted them and were now facing the same fate also joined in.

The officers and soldiers of the Central Army couldn’t bear to watch and turned their heads away.

‘What are you doing? Fire the cannons! Burn them all and blow them away!’

At Duke Dirk’s urging, the officers, who couldn’t bring themselves to push the soldiers, fired the cannons themselves.

The mages dispatched from the Imperial Magic Tower also unleashed fire magic from the watchtowers.

‘Kuaaak! Save me…!’

‘Damn it!’

The soldiers from Nemesis cursed and covered their ears at the screams and pleas of the people engulfed in flames.

But even with their eyes tightly shut and their ears covered, the images of the people engulfed in flames and their desperate screams continued to haunt their minds.

Eventually, the soldiers, unable to bear it any longer, burst into tears.

‘This is hell. The hell I’m destined to fall into.’

Some officers, unable to bear the guilt, threw themselves off the city walls.

The flames, ignited by the devil’s coercion, consumed their bodies.

5

The fire and commotion in the northern streets caused another problem.

The citizens of the Imperial Capital, startled by the sudden shelling and massive fire, had rushed out of their homes in the middle of the night.

‘What’s going on?’

‘That’s where the patients are quarantined…’

Even before this, the public sentiment had been uneasy due to the sight of patients and nearby residents being indiscriminately rounded up under the guise of preventing the spread of the epidemic.

Those who were quick-witted realized what was happening and became pale, while those who were not shouted at the Central Army that had surrounded the northern streets.

‘What are you doing! Why aren’t you putting out the fire!’

‘My wife is there! Open the gate right now, you damn bastards!’

The citizens whose families had been taken away threw stones and rotten fruit at the Central Army standing stiffly on the city walls and barricades.

Most of the officers and soldiers silently endured the barrage of anger, but there were some who did not.

‘You bastards!’

A Central Army unit commander, hit by a rotten egg, flared up and shouted at the citizens.

‘We are carrying out the Imperial Order! Leave this place immediately! Otherwise, we will punish you under the law!’

Despite the threat, the people, already at the peak of their anger, did not easily back down.

‘What nonsense about the law! You took them away saying you’d treat them, and now you’re doing this!’

‘You killed the nobles, and now you’re burning the commoners to death!’

‘Kill us if you dare!’

The stone-throwing became more intense.

A Gigante of the Imperial Knights stepped forward and threatened them by stomping his feet, but the people did not yield.

No, they resisted even more fiercely.

‘Everyone, we can’t let this continue! Let’s open the city gate right now!’

‘I’ll take the lead! Those who want to save their families, follow me!’

Waaaaaah!

The enraged citizens rushed towards the city gate.

As thousands of people rushed at once, the Imperial Knight riding the Gigante panicked and couldn’t react.

‘N-no, no, you can’t do this!’

‘Step back! Damn it! Do you think we’re doing this because we want to?’

The soldiers waiting behind the city gate tried to calm the people.

But how could they be calmed when their families were burning to death beyond the city walls!

In a situation where the city gate seemed about to be breached, the unit commander, who had lost his reason, issued an attack order.

‘Anyone who opposes His Majesty’s order is a traitor! Kill all the rioters!’

Suddenly, the citizens of the Imperial Capital had become traitors and rioters.

*Boom!*

With a single cannon shot, the citizens who had gathered in front of the city gate were swept away.

‘Aaaah! My, my leg!’

‘You dogs, you’re worse than dogs!’

The suppression took place not only at the city gate but also at the blocked paths.

However, the citizens, whose anger had exploded, did not back down and fought the army with their bare hands, seizing weapons.

Thus, the nighttime disturbance escalated into a riot.

*Ding-ding-ding-ding!*

Late at night, Count Ferrero, who had been spending the night sleepless in his office at the military camp, jumped up from his seat at the sudden, loud ringing of bells.

‘What is it? Could it be…!’

He grabbed his sword in a hurry and went outside, where his adjutant came running to report.

‘It’s a disaster, Commander! The citizens are rioting in the Imperial Capital right now!’

‘Hah, so it’s that.’

Ferrero sighed deeply.

If a special operations unit or a separate detachment from the Kingdom of Livia had infiltrated and caused a disturbance, he wouldn’t have been so dismayed.

He had somewhat expected it, but hearing that the citizens had rioted made the sword in his hand feel infinitely heavy.

Because now, he was in a situation where he had to cut down the citizens with his own sword.

‘If I had known it would come to this, I would have risked my life to stop His Majesty…’

Earlier that day, Ferrero had received an order to transfer all the patients infected with the epidemic to the northern residential area.

Unable to carry out the Emperor’s order to kill the patients to stop the epidemic, he had made the excuse that he was unwell and entrusted this task to Duke Dirk, the vice-commander.

Duke Dirk, a fervent pro-Emperor noble, had carried out the Emperor’s order without hesitation.

How diligently he had carried out his task could be seen from the smoke and flames rising from the north.

The citizens of the Imperial Capital would not have been able to watch their families burn to death in a living hell, and they would have clashed with the Central Army and the Imperial Knights carrying out the Imperial Order.

And that clash would have grown uncontrollably and turned into a riot.

‘Why did His Majesty do such a thing… Ugh, it’s all Kepler’s fault. If that bastard hadn’t proposed using that damn epidemic, this wouldn’t have happened!’

It was when Ferrero was inwardly seething with anger.

A messenger knight, who had ridden from the Imperial Palace, delivered an Imperial Order.

‘His Majesty has ordered the remaining forces of the Central Army to be dispatched to suppress the riot.’

‘Suppress?’

‘Yes, he said that there is a very high possibility that this riot was caused by enemy spies.’

‘Spies? That’s nonsense.’

Surely, Emperor Rudolf also knew the cause.

Even so, the reason he was playing dumb like this was to hide the massacre of the patients and to establish a justification for suppressing the riot.

‘Hurry and depart. He said that those who have been deceived by the enemy’s tricks and have disturbed the order are traitors and should be thoroughly suppressed without any leniency, to make an example of them.’

‘It’s like firing cannons at a burning house.’

Ferrero knew that a forceful suppression would only provoke the citizens of the Imperial Capital rather than calm them down.

If things went wrong, the riot could spread throughout the Imperial Capital, or even to other regions within the Empire.

Moreover, if Livia or the Symphonia Kingdom learned of this fact, they would surely use it as propaganda, saying that the reason they had become independent was because of the Emperor’s cruel nature.

‘I have to stop the situation from getting any worse!’

Thinking so, Ferrero decided to go directly to the Imperial Palace and have the Imperial Order revoked.

However, before he could even take a step, the messenger knight added one more thing.

‘And His Majesty said that there will absolutely be no revocation of the order. He also said that any act of disobedience to the order will be treated as treason, so please be faithful to your duty.’

‘Ugh, I understand. You may return now.’

At the messenger knight’s words, Ferrero nodded with a heavy heart.

He realized that Emperor Rudolf had completely lost his rational judgment.

Although the Empire had been split into three by the rebels, and public sentiment had deteriorated due to the aftermath of the war, the citizens of the Imperial Capital and its vicinity were still the last bastion that had long supported the Baroque Imperial Family.

They were afraid of the tyrannical Emperor, but on the other hand, there was also a view that sympathized with the Emperor, who had lost his wife and children and had been betrayed by the nobles.

It was because of that small amount of understanding that they had silently endured Rudolf’s oppression.

However, this incident had completely broken the relationship between the Emperor and the citizens of the Imperial Capital.

‘Has His Majesty finally decided to go down a path of no return?’

Ferrero gave a bitter smile and immediately issued the order to deploy.

Even if he had to disregard the Emperor’s order to suppress the riot, he had to somehow calm the situation.

‘May God help us!’

It was the first day that he, who had almost no faith, sought God.