The capital, the imperial palace.
"Minister, how could you let His Majesty order the massacre of an entire village?! Just for a suspected revolutionary spy, so many innocent villagers were killed. They were all citizens of the empire!"
The atmosphere in the court was extremely tense. A woman was furiously questioning the obese minister, Honest, who stood beside the throne, tearing into a piece of meat.
The woman's name was Najenda. She was the youngest and only female general in the empire, possessing exceptional strategic skills, courage, and a heart full of justice.
With her silver hair, silver eyes, and a silver coat draped over her shoulders, she was a striking figure—a woman of beauty, grace, and intelligence.
Many nobles in the palace had hoped to marry this rare female general, but she had rejected them all. In the now-corrupt empire, she was one of the few officials with a conscience.
Najenda was furious, absolutely furious. She had just returned from a mission outside the capital when she received news that the emperor had ordered the massacre of an entire village to capture a suspected revolutionary spy.
For this country, for the so-called emperor, Najenda was utterly disappointed. It was clear that this was yet another heinous scheme by the despicable minister.
"Now, now, General Najenda, speaking in such a tone before His Majesty is highly disrespectful!"
The minister showed no sign of panic as he continued to chew on his meat.
"Moreover, please watch your words. This was His Majesty's wise decision. How could it be something I suggested? I have always been loyal to His Majesty and the empire!"
"The village harbored a revolutionary spy—that is an indisputable fact. Although it's regrettable that all the villagers were killed, don't you think it's an honor for them to sacrifice themselves for the empire?"
"I've always been looking for such an opportunity myself—to give my life for His Majesty and the empire. How enviable they must be!"
The minister squeezed his small eyes, even managing to squeeze out two drops of an unknown liquid. To an uninformed observer, it might seem like this fat man was a paragon of justice patriotism.
Wiping his eyes with his sleeve, the minister looked down at Najenda, who was trembling with anger, and gave a sly smile. He thought to himself, "What a naive little girl. Trying to fight me? I'll crush you!"
"Yes, yes, General Najenda, the minister is only doing what's best for the empire. How can you say such things?"
"These are His Majesty's sacred decrees. As a mere general, how dare you question His Majesty's wisdom?"
"Indeed, women are so ignorant. They think a little intelligence makes them invincible."
"Those villagers colluded with the revolutionaries. They deserved to die!"
…
The court was filled with chatter, but the vast majority supported and defended the minister. The empire was already corrupt and decadent. Who would want to do something thankless and risk offending the all-powerful minister?
Thus, Najenda, who had initially come to confront the minister, found herself the target of criticism, pushed to the forefront of the storm with no way out.
"You… you…"
Looking at these sycophantic officials who were blatantly lying to please the minister, Najenda's beautiful face turned pale with anger, and her chest heaved with fury.
Although Najenda was an incredibly strong-willed young woman, she couldn't help but feel a sense of helplessness and despair for the future of this country.
"General Budo…"
With a glimmer of hope, even a pleading look in her eyes, Najenda turned to the imposing man clad in armor, standing like a mountain on the other side of the throne.
"Sigh… Najenda, your duty is to obey His Majesty's orders and protect the empire. Military officers should not interfere in internal affairs. You've overstepped your authority."
Although he greatly admired the young woman's integrity and fearlessness, the empire's strongest general, Budo, ultimately sighed and replied.
Despite being fully aware of the minister's actions and deeply saddened by the young emperor's foolishness in listening to the treacherous minister, he also had his family's thousand-year-old honor and vows to uphold. As a military officer, his duty was to protect the emperor, and only the emperor. He could not interfere in the country's internal affairs.
"Stubborn old fool! Are you really going to stand by and watch this country be destroyed by that bastard minister? You idiot! Fool!.."
As a general commanding hundreds of thousands of troops, despite being a woman, Najenda had her own pride and courage. Seeing Budo repeatedly turn a blind eye, even though he had the power to act, and still cling to some ridiculous ancestral teachings she was filled with rage. Without caring that he was her superior, she lashed out at him.
The entire court was stunned. Who was General Budo? He was the strongest man in the empire, capable of taking on ten thousand enemies single-handedly!
Although he usually stayed out of political affairs, his reputation was known throughout the continent. No one, not even the minister, dared to provoke him lightly!
Yet, here he was, being scolded by a young woman barely in her twenties!
Najenda, in the heat of the moment, couldn't care less. She felt like she would go mad if she didn't vent her anger. She was about to continue her tirade when someone suddenly stepped in to stop her.
"General Rokugou, what are you doing? Let me go!"
Seeing that it was her colleague, General Rokugou, the only other general in the empire besides herself and Budo, Najenda shouted angrily.
"Najenda, calm down! Do you know what you're doing?!"
Rokugou was a robust man in his thirties. Although he wasn't as strategic as Najenda or as powerful as Budo, he was no simple man to have risen to the rank of general.
He was also one of the few officials in the empire with a conscience. Knowing that Najenda would cause a disaster if she continued, he quickly stepped in to stop her.
Rokugou's shout brought Najenda back to her senses. Looking around at the officials who were sneering at her, the minister, and the dark-faced General Budo, she was suddenly struck with fear, and a cold sweat broke out on her forehead.
Najenda was a rare genius in the empire, with wisdom, courage, and strategic skills unmatched in centuries. Under normal circumstances, she would never have done something so reckless and self-destructive. But this time, her long-suppressed anger and disappointment with the empire had finally erupted.
"Thank you, General Rokugou, I'm fine now."
Taking a deep breath, Najenda cast a grateful glance at Rokugou, forcing herself to calm down and saying nothing more.
She knew that this time, she had inadvertently left a handle, and those bastards in the ministry would surely take the opportunity to suppress and deal with her. Although General Budo might not punish her severely, the fact that she had offended him was unchangeable.
In the past, facing such a situation, Najenda might have felt panicked and constantly thought of ways to cope, but this time she didn't have that mood, instead, she appeared extremely calm.
She had no expectations for this country anymore, let them do as they please…
"Hehehe, General Najenda, it's one thing for you to slander me, but you even dared to question His Majesty's wisdom, and now you even insulted General Budo, who is loyal to the empire, you really have a lot of nerve!"
While chewing on a piece of meat, the minister coldly spoke to Najenda below.
Those officials who wanted to curry favor with the minister also joined in to accuse Najenda, as if she were a heinous criminal.
"Your Majesty, please make a wise judgment on this rebellious woman. Although my personal reputation is not worth mentioning, Your Majesty's wisdom and General Budo's dignity must not be offended by anyone!"
"If we let her off easily this time, she might do it again next time, we must not tolerate such behavior!"
With a sly look in his eyes, the minister advised the little emperor on the throne.
Frowning, although he felt that the minister was exaggerating and making a mountain out of a molehill, General Budo on the side ultimately said nothing.
Najenda had insulted him in front of everyone, anyone would be angry!
"Hmm, the minister makes a good point."
Nodding, the little emperor on the throne seemed to agree deeply.
"General Najenda, you questioned my decision and insulted General Budo, who is loyal to the empire, originally your crime is heinous and unforgivable! But considering you are a pillar of the empire and have made countless military achievements for the empire, I now sentence you to not exercise any general's rights for a month, go home and reflect, and never do it again! Do you have any objections?"
Although the little emperor was muddle-headed, sitting in this position for a long time made him speak in a set way, and with quite a bit of momentum, pointing the scepter at Najenda below, his young face serious.
"Your Majesty, Najenda is willing to accept the punishment, no objections."
She breathed a sigh of relief in her heart, this result was much better than she had imagined. Although there were many things she was dissatisfied with, the now calm Najenda would not do anything stupid.
Seeing Najenda so obedient this time, the minister, still chewing on a piece of meat, curled his lips into a smug smile. He hadn't thought of killing this female general with one blow, he still needed her to continue his dominance in the empire without being disturbed by those annoying foreign tribes!
"Hmm, since that's the case, then today's court meeting ends here."
Satisfied, feeling that he had been a wise monarch again today, the little emperor was in a pretty good mood.
However, just at this moment, suddenly a soldier in armor hurriedly ran in:
"Not good, Your Majesty, someone has broken into the palace!"