Chapter 131: The Face of the Empire (4) The Imperial Guard.
They were fundamentally different from knights. They were a group that existed solely to protect the Emperor—or more accurately, the central power. To put it simply, they were little more than the private soldiers of the Imperial Palace.
The Knights and the Imperial Guard both symbolized the Empire's tradition, military might, and its unique brand of Iron Man Ideology—but as is often the case, they did not get along. Much like how the regular army and the Praetorian Guard might despise one another...
Gale looked at them and asked, "Hannah. How's your body holding up?"
Hannah drew her sword.
"Fine. The painkillers are finally kicking in."
It might have been the adrenaline. Every time she moved her mana, a twisting pain flared in her gut as if her internal organs were being wrung out, but she didn't have the luxury of complaining.
Sssssss—
Before they knew it, the ship had set sail. No, the land was already far away. On the deck, surrounded by an inescapable sea, the two of them faced the Imperial Guard.
—Lower your weapons.
One of the guards spoke. The voice coming from behind the helmet was as stiff and mechanical as a machine. Gale and Hannah scrutinized them, gauging their strength.
"They certainly look like they came prepared to handle knights."
A snake-like smile spread across Gale's lips.
There were eight guards in total, but their composition was lethal: three Captains of the Ten, led by a Centurion. The Imperial Guard's status could be identified by the color of their cloaks and the shape, texture, and purity of their mana stone armor, making it quite easy to assess their combat power.
A single Centurion would be equal to or even stronger than a high-ranking knight.
Fsssss—
The ship, which showed no signs of stopping, cut through the acrid sea, and a thick sea fog rose above the water's surface. The glow from within the guards' helmets flared through the mist. They felt even more like ominous, inhuman entities.
"Hannah."
Gale asked, his eyes never leaving them.
"In your opinion, do you think we have a chance?"
The murderous intent radiating from the gaps in the Centurion's helmet grew even denser.
Hannah looked back and forth between them.
"..."
Her head throbbed with a sharp, stinging pain. That Centurion was likely far stronger than the ones she had faced in Volska.
"...A chance."
She whispered softly. She looked down at her sword. Her fingers were trembling slightly.
—I will not say this again. Lower your weapons.
Gale gestured toward Hannah's sword with his eyes.
"....Hannah Usar."
Gale seemed to be trying to persuade her.
Hannah slowly looked around at Gale, the Imperial Guard, and this place shrouded in fog.
Don't trust anyone.
Don't trust the part of me that thinks I might actually survive against a Centurion.
Don't even trust Gale, who stands beside me right now.
Trust no one, Hannah Usar.
You have no shoulder to lean on.
"—I'm sure we both have things at stake here."
As if trying to buy Hannah time to think, Gale took a step forward.
"Let's talk and make a deal."
—Talk. A deal.
The voice was muffled by the helmet. It was more eerie than dignified, and the lack of inflection made it sound sub-human.
"Yes."
Gale turned his head to look at Hannah.
"Hannah. Tell them what you have."
The evidence hidden somewhere in Volska. The ledger and the rifle parts stamped with the Gigantes seal.
"...What I have."
At Hannah's words, Gale swallowed hard, looking tense.
Clank. The guards adjusted their grip on their swords and stepped closer.
Sssssss.
The fog was so thick it felt tangible.
The humidity made it feel as if she were already submerged beneath the sea. Everywhere her eyes landed felt like a blade; even the air was a silence honed to a sharp edge.
"Haaa......."
In the midst of a tension so thick it was hard to breathe.
"What I have is—"
HOOOOOOOOONK—!
The thunderous roar of a foghorn suddenly tore through the silence.
Everyone covered their ears and turned toward the sound.
".....Ugh!"
"Gah!"
Another ship emerged from beyond the fog.
A vessel that had approached as silently as a ghost ship.
A man stood at its prow.
Flutter—
The hem of an Imperial Knight's formal uniform billowed in the sea breeze. His blonde hair shone coldly under the moonlight, and his golden eyes looked down at them with total indifference.
"..."
His presence was silent, yet it seemed to fill the entire sea.
The man who most embodied the Empire—Maximilian was standing there.
Thud.
Leaping from the prow as if merely taking a step, he landed on the deck without even bending his knees. He surveyed his surroundings and spoke calmly.
"...It seems things are already reaching a conclusion."
Suddenly, his gaze landed on Gale. Gale was momentarily tense, but it was for nothing. Maximilian actually offered a gentle smile.
"Good work, Sir Gale."
Gale's pupils shook. His expression was a mix of bewilderment and suspicion.
"....What?"
Hannah reacted instead. She stared blankly back and forth between Maximilian and Gale.
Did he come to save me? Or is it the opposite—
Maximilian shrugged.
"In any case, you know as well as I do, don't you, Sir Knight? I was also an investor in Gigantes."
Maximilian was one of the victims of the Gigantes incident. He had been caught in the terror attack immediately after pouring in a massive amount of capital and received no compensation.
"In fact, I suffered the greatest loss. Tens of millions simply vanished into thin air."
Maximilian frowned as he glared at the Imperial Guard Centurion.
"Which means I am also in a position to have my losses compensated. The amount of money I lost was quite significant."
"No, wait—"
Just as Hannah was about to say something, the Centurion closed the distance in an instant. A cold blade touched the nape of Hannah's neck.
—Do not move.
Hannah bit her lip. She glared at Gale with wide eyes. Her gaze screamed at him to say something, anything.
Gale met her eyes indifferently and asked Maximilian.
"....So you knew everything?"
"I found out a bit late. I didn't realize you had such grand ambitions, Sir Knight."
Gale gave a bitter laugh.
"A commoner without ambition couldn't even make it into the Sentinels."
He scratched near his eyebrow. The wrinkles on his face bloomed like flowers as if his tension had finally vanished.
"Wow..."
Hannah was honestly impressed, yet filled with loathing.
Was this a set-up from the very beginning? From the moment Gale gave me the mission?
More than the sense of betrayal, she was simply dumbfounded. It felt as if someone were shocking her brain with a cattle prod.
"....It started as a coincidence."
Gale ran a hand through his hair. A dry smile played on his lips.
"But when coincidences keep stacking up, it starts to feel like divine providence."
What does a commoner knight live for? With what heart do they sustain their lives?
Without any hope or vision, they are merely hollow shells that exist only to earn money.
Wetting their dry, dusty mouths with their annual salary, they simply grow old, satisfied with doing the work given to them—just like the clerks and administrative officers who have no greed.
As a knight, as a human, they have no ambition; they are worn down by reality and soaked in inertia.
One day, while looking at himself with self-mockery as he spiraled down, Gale 'coincidentally' intercepted intelligence during his duties.
—Sir Knight. It seems Gigantes goods are being distributed in Volska.
At first, he thought it was just a common occurrence of Imperial scrap metal or used weapons being circulated, but while investigating out of boredom, he realized a significant truth.
It was thanks to a single rifle whose serial number hadn't been fully erased, which he had also 'coincidentally' obtained.
A rifle from just before Gigantes was destroyed by the terror attack.
The certainty that some high-ranking official in the Imperial Palace was making money by selling these.
"I thought that perhaps the world, the Empire, was calling for me."
When those coincidences overlapped, Gale saw it as a revelation—a golden rope to climb.
—'Hannah Usar, this is a mission. A large-scale trade of weapons and illegal mana stones is being attempted in Volska. The buyers are suspected to be remnants of Zentra.'
Gale had deployed Leon and Hannah. Leon was the justification, and Hannah was the tool. Both had done well.
Leon returned by his family's order, and Hannah remained in Volska.
The unexpected part was Hannah's excessive competence. And her persistence.
"Fortunately, things worked out."
In exchange for covering up this Gigantes business and burying it in a prettier shape—and in exchange for handing over Hannah—he had secured it. Gale had grabbed onto Julius's line.
"....Ha."
Hannah let out a hollow laugh. The blade was touching her neck, but her scalp felt so hot she couldn't even feel it.
"Why the look? You should have known when to stop. If you had just listened, this would have ended with a simple dismissal, but you acted like someone dying to have their head cut off."
Gale smirked as he brushed dust off his clothes. Already, the fishy smell of the sea seemed to cling to his lips.
"I'll leave her disposal to you, Maximilian."
"Yes. We can discuss the details later with him."
"...Haha. You mean Lord Julius? That sounds good to me."
Gale patted Maximilian on the shoulder.
"Ah, take good care of that Centurion as well. He's one of Lord Julius's men."
Maximilian raised an eyebrow silently.
He walked over and stood in front of Hannah.
"...Is this the Empire you speak of?"
Hannah glared at Maximilian and muttered.
"Selling out your subordinates and conspiring with the scum who smuggle Imperial weapons to terrorists. Is this the true face of the Empire you seek to protect?"
"And if it is?"
Maximilian asked back nonchalantly.
"What do you plan to do if this is the true face of the Empire that you were ignorant of?"
"No."
Hannah shook her head firmly. Her hair, wet with moisture, swayed.
"The face of the Empire I know is not like this."
"This is for the sake of the Empire."
"Never! This is nothing but a piece of shit—"
"No. Think more clearly. It is the act of selling Gigantes's cheap goods at a higher price—in other words, embezzling money from terrorists to fill the national treasury. Have you never thought of it that way?"
"Cut the bullshit! Subjects are bleeding because of those weapons!"
Hannah screamed. The swaying of the sea amplified her cry like an echo.
Maximilian narrowed his eyes as if she were pathetic.
"....Hannah. You remind me of that fellow whose head was cut off right beside you."
Jacob.
He deserved to die because he was identified as a sub-species. Hannah accepted that, but the Maximilian she was facing now was a bigger bastard than any sub-species.
"Yes. Go ahead and kill me too. Since I'm not a sub-species. Fuck."
"..."
Step. Maximilian took one more step closer.
"Hannah Usar. I will ask you once more. What is the Empire in your eyes?"
Hannah looked up at him, gritting her teeth. Panting with murderous rage, she spat out a single word.
".....Power."
"Power?"
"The power to protect its subjects. The power to maintain order. A country that possesses the power to unite its interior and protect us from the chaos outside—that is the Empire."
"Indeed. And you are disturbing that order."
"Bullshit."
Hannah wanted to spit but held back. She felt like her head would be lopped off if she did. Truly, the Centurion's blade was right against her throat.
"The Empire's system and the hierarchy of status do not exist merely for oppression."
"Oh? Are you saying you deny the class system?"
Maximilian tilted his head with interest, and Gale laughed out loud.
"No. I do not deny it, for it is the natural order of the Empire. However!"
Hannah stared at Maximilian with bloodshot eyes.
"The reason we commoners willingly live while accepting that oppression is because of the belief that the power above will protect us from external threats."
"Yes. You are a commoner. If you are a commoner, you should be able to commit any act for the sake of the Empire. You should offer your life—"
"That's why, if it's for the sake of the Empire!"
She cut Maximilian off and roared. A thin line of blood trickled down her neck.
"I'm saying this isn't for the Empire! How is selling weapons made by Gigantes to terrorists to kill our own subjects 'for the Empire'! This is just a goddamn disgusting mess to line your own fucking pockets with grease!"
Her ragged breathing filled the deck.
Maximilian stared intently into her venomous eyes.
"You're hopeless."
Truly...
He gave a hollow laugh and looked back at Gale.
"What do you think?"
Gale nodded with a look of disgust.
"I agree. She's hopeless."
"Yes. Then."
Maximilian gestured to the Centurion.
"Step aside."
—Swing away. I shall dodge on my own.
Maximilian nodded. Gale watched, enjoying the scene and imagining the rosy future that awaited him.
Shring.
The longsword of Ebenholtz—a blade that seemed to drink the moonlight—was drawn.
Hannah squeezed her eyes shut.
In the very next moment.
The sword silently cleaved through the air. The thick fog was instantly split, and a silver trajectory pierced the deck.
Thud.
The sound of something falling echoed.
But no matter how long she waited, there was no pain.
Am I already dead? Did I go to the afterlife? Just as she thought this, Hannah slowly opened her eyes.
"......?"
It was a bizarre sight.
It wasn't her own, but Gale's head that lay fallen on the deck.
—What the hell. What have you—
"From this moment, I speak in the name of Maximilian von Ebenholtz, Knight of the Sentinels."
As the Centurion began to react, Maximilian's firm voice cut across the sea.
"In accordance with Article 14, Treason, and Article 27 of the Imperial Military Code."
Silver mana rose quietly from the Ebenholtz longsword.
"I hereby summarily execute a traitor caught in the act of framing a comrade for personal greed and attempting to harm the Empire by fabricating an incident related to national industry."
While even the Imperial Guard flinched in shock and Hannah continued to blink blankly on this vast ocean.
The silver blade, without a single drop of blood on it, slowly shifted its target to point at the Centurion's throat.
"You, too, shall deliver a message to your master. For the crime of violating the order of the Empire and daring to fatten his own belly with assets built upon the blood of its subjects—"
His voice rang out clearly across the entire area.
"You are next."
.....In that moment, everyone fell silent.
Hannah Usar, the Centurion, the Captains of the Ten, and the other guards all simply stared at Maximilian.
"..."
If the Imperial Guard decided to suppress him, if they truly intended to kill him, Maximilian might actually lose.
The strength of the Guard present was that formidable.
And yet, they could not bring themselves to swing their swords at him.
No, they couldn't even think of resisting; they didn't dare take a single step closer.
In the face of such a strange silence, Hannah thought.
Power.
This was true power, and transparent authority.
To be able to behead a fellow knight without a moment's hesitation and yet lose none of his legitimacy—and for the Imperial Guard to be so utterly overwhelmed by the name of his house that they couldn't even lift a finger.
The man whom even a Centurion didn't dare treat lightly was... the heir of Ebenholtz.
Maximilian, Knight of the Empire.
"Hup!"
Hannah belatedly did her part. Moving her body forcefully, she pushed away from the Centurion and leaped to Maximilian's side.
"...Hannah Usar."
Maximilian spoke as he looked at her.
"You were correct."
A shiver ran down Hannah's spine. Never had the word 'correct' sounded so beautiful.
"What you answered—that is the proper face of the Empire."
She bit her lip hard and nodded.
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
Read 30 more chapters ahead on NovelDex!
https://noveldex.io/series/semi-coercive-imperialist
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━