"What?! You mean this was ordered by His Majesty the King?!" Vick was shaken, though Dingle's words carried weight.
"That's right, it was the King's Shadows who did this. These here are just cover-ups. Bring them forward." Dingle ordered.
Dozens of soldiers dragged out over ten corpses and threw them before everyone. They were the very guards who had originally accompanied the count.
Of course, they hadn't been found inside the castle—Dingle had taken them after killing the count's men.
"Nonsense! You killed them yourselves…" The count tried to protest, but a kick to the head left him reeling.
"So you nobles can kill, but we cannot?" Dingle's words implied that these men had died in the castle.
The three commanders fell silent, their gazes shifting toward Xia.
"Lady Xia, aren't you the new president of the AKS Chamber of Commerce?" Rea frowned, sensing something amiss.
But when he thought carefully—who besides the King's Shadows could have breached the Ironclad Fortress?
It was rumored that every king possessed design schematics of the great fortresses, offered by the nobles as tokens of loyalty.
These had existed for generations. Without such plans to reveal weak points, how else could the fortress have fallen so swiftly?
And that giant… perhaps it too was part of the method, though none knew what power it wielded. Was it a living being or a construct? What was it made of? They could only guess—answers would come later, but not now.
"Do you think you can address the princess by name so casually?" Rosen knew exactly what to do. A flash of lightning and he appeared behind Rea in an instant.
Startled, Rea reached for his blade, but Rosen's fist smashed him to the ground, his boot pinning his head.
"Lord Rea!" the soldiers cried, fingers tightening on their triggers.
"Wait." Vick raised a hand. The situation was too tangled.
"What are you doing? Things aren't yet clear, and—" Dast drew his weapon in alarm, for events were unfolding too fast and too strangely.
"No, the truth is already clear. Duke Valos sent the princess into the care of the former AKS president for her safety. Who would have thought that after his sudden death, the secret would leak? His Majesty has always known of Princess Xia—otherwise, how could the daughter of a mere merchant have had such access to the royal palace?"
"But once exposed, it became a scandal. The King's honor could not bear the stain. To preserve the dignity of the crown, he ordered the family erased. That is the truth. Now, the rightful heir of House Valos is Princess Xia. Any who oppose her will be treated as enemies of the realm." Dingle's words cut through the air.
Many found themselves believing it. Nobles valued their pride above all; such acts were not unheard of.
"This…" Vick faltered.
If Xia herself had said this, he wouldn't have believed it. But since it came from Dingle, Valos's most trusted aide, perhaps it was true.
Which meant Xia was indeed their leader now.
"Captain, stand down," Xia said calmly to Rosen. She then drew a pistol and leveled it at the count.
"No, no, wait—you can't kill me! I'm His Majesty's envoy! This would be treason, rebellion!" the count screamed, nearly faint with terror.
"Wait!" Dast stepped forward, alarmed. If the King's envoy was slain, they would have no way out—the King would surely brand them traitors.
But before he could finish—
A blade flashed. Dast's head flew.
Rosen had struck. Now was not the time for hesitation or truth-seeking. They had to seal every path of retreat, to make the choice irreversible.
Iron-blooded measures were necessary. A sand-forged blade, prepared long in advance, severed Dast where he stood.
"Anyone who dares obstruct the princess's vengeance is an enemy. That was the first. Who will be the second?" Rosen's voice was cold as his Conqueror's Haki swept forth. In an instant, more than half the soldiers collapsed unconscious.
"Conqueror's Haki!" Vick's face drained of color.
Xia's captain was this strong? Dast, whose strength was second only to his own, had been killed instantly. If Rosen turned on him, he would stand no chance.
And now, most of their troops had been felled without a fight. It was terrifying.
No one dared speak. Fear gripped them all. With Valos dead, if no successor arose, what would become of them? At best, they might be absorbed by others. At worst, stripped of rank and scattered.
Such an outcome was unthinkable for men of their standing. As doubt gnawed at them, a gunshot rang out.
Bang!
The count's skull burst apart. He had died as dazed as he had been captured.
The shot turned the commanders' faces ashen. The situation had slipped completely from their hands.
Holstering her weapon, Xia's gaze swept over Vick and Rea, her voice frigid. "Since the King has shown no righteousness, I will not sit and wait for death. From this day, the Valos Fortress enters highest alert. Effective immediately, I declare total war against the Kingdom's forces. Commander Vick, Commander Rea—do you object?"
The two exchanged a stunned look. Things had moved too fast for them to react.
Xia and Dingle had seized the initiative, backed by Rosen's overwhelming force. Their hesitation had already left them at a disadvantage.
Now, before their own troops, Xia demanded their allegiance. If they refused, they would be condemned by their men as cowards, loyal to a dead master. If they agreed, they would be branded rebels.
But if they refused, would they even leave alive? They had little choice.
"Fight for the princess, and if the tyrant falls, you will be honored as heroes. But if not—do you think His Majesty will spare you? You've already shed the envoy's blood. Even if the King forgave you, the other nobles never would. You have no path left but this." Rosen's words pierced the last defenses of their hearts.
He was right. Valos was dead, and they were already complicit in killing the King's envoy. There could be no clean escape.
Better to gamble on Xia. It was no longer about avenging Valos. It was about survival.
Truth no longer mattered. Not here. Not now.
(End of Chapter)