Just like when we took control of the capital last time, speed is key to any rebellion, no matter the era or region.
The most standard approach is to plan as discreetly as possible and then strike like lightning.
However, you can add a variation to this by dividing your forces and conducting diversionary operations.
The idea is to have pre-prepared units secure critical objectives in advance, while follow-up forces manage the area and suppress any counterattacks.
What we were about to do fell under this kind of variation.
Though we brought some revolutionary forces from the north, our main force was the central army stationed in the capital.
“Sir, I see an unusual-looking city wall. It’s Rahator.”
“Have the signal beacons been lit? That was supposed to be the sign of the operation’s success.”
“They’re faint, but I see them over there. The colors match, too.”
The capital had already been prepared as per the instructions sent via messengers along the way.
Soldiers usually tasked with maintaining public order had been deployed to occupy the parliament and block off the nobles’ residences.
A whole grenadier regiment had been stationed at the High Court, and civilians gathered in the square were forcibly dispersed to their homes.
Every high-value target and gathering place, except for cathedrals and churches already allied with us, was filled with soldiers.
Commercial districts and prisons were no exception.
In just a few hours, Rahator, the kingdom’s largest city, had undergone a drastic transformation.
Into this city, we marched, muskets raised high with bayonets gleaming.
“Welcome, sir. It’s been a while.”
“…Vaden.”
One of my subordinates, along with a group of officers, came out to greet me.
I didn’t ask how he’d been or if he’d had a hard time.
Neither of us had the mental space for small talk.
We exchanged a brief glance before diving straight into business.
“Looks like you’ve set things up well. Have you secured all the targets I ordered subdued?”
“Of course. Sent troops to the palace, the court, the political prisoner facility—everywhere. None of them have called for reinforcements, so it looks like there are no issues.”
As expected of someone who’s served directly under me for seven years, his work is efficient.
While his field command skills might be a bit lacking, he excels at low-intensity operations like these.
“Then let’s move on to the next task. I brought some of our men from the north. I’ll hand them over to you, so round up every single noble remaining in the capital.”
“Uh… excuse me, sir. Do you mean all of them? Even the families that are cooperating with your faction?”
“Yes. No exceptions. Arrest them all—men, women, everyone—unless they’re children under ten or the elderly.”
Vaden looked taken aback, but my resolve was unwavering.
Any family with enough standing to own a residence in the capital is bound to be aware of central political developments.
Even if they weren’t actively involved in politics, information would naturally flow their way.
Blue-blooded aristocrats thrive on their tight-knit social circles; avoiding such news would require complete isolation from the outside world, which is nearly impossible.
And yet, they’ve remained silent this whole time? That can only mean one thing—they knew but chose to feign ignorance.
There’s more than enough justification to arrest them and conduct thorough interrogations.
Of course, regardless of what the interrogations reveal, their punishment is already decided.
“Sir!”
“…Go on ahead and get started. I’ll head to the palace.”
As I gave the order and prepared to move, an unexpected and unwelcome guest appeared.
It was none other than the young republican congresswoman, still in her nightclothes, clearly unprepared for the situation.
“Lady Arschach, what are you doing here? I’m certain I left soldiers at your residence to guard you.”
“The situation seemed unusual, so I came out to check. What in the world is happening? Why are soldiers suddenly all over the city?”
“There’s a reason for it,” I replied.
“Do you remember the last time we gathered everyone and I explained the situation? I’ve confirmed it—it’s all true.”
Despite the chaos—screams echoing from all directions, gunfire, soldiers running about—she quickly grasped the situation.
Her expression turned grave.
“You mean the theory that the Crown Prince is the cause of the war? Don’t tell me it’s actually–”
“If you understand, then excuse me. I need to capture the damned King and his royal brats before they flee.”
“Wait, what? Hold on, sir! Sir! Lord Royten!”
Her frantic voice called after me, but I spurred my horse forward, leaving her behind. I felt bad, but there was no time to explain things to her now.
I’d have to apologize and provide further details later when the dust settled.
The grand boulevards leading to the palace were completely blocked off by the central army, sealing off all possible escape routes like a noose tightening around a condemned man.
With my escort in tow, I crossed the barricades and entered the palace without encountering any resistance.
Through long corridors and countless ornate rooms, I pressed forward, heading directly for the lavish bedchamber where the King and his family were likely holed up.
To be honest, I walked in a half-daze. My emotions spiraled out of control, clouding my ability to think rationally.
It felt as though my reason had been completely replaced by raw instincts.
“This is the room. You can enter directly,” someone informed me.
Finally, when I came face to face with the Crown Prince, my last vestiges of self-control vanished, leaving only seething fury.
“L-Lord Royten? Why are you here? Did you—are the soldiers outside under your orders–?”
CRACK!
“Shut up, you brain-dead bastard.”
The back of my hand connected with his face before he could finish speaking.
The moment the bastard tried to rise from his chair upon seeing me, I smashed my fist into his jaw.
I didn’t hold back in the slightest.
His jawbone shattered under the force, and I grabbed it, feeling it crumble into pieces under my grip.
The sensation of calcium and protein snapping into fragments in my hand wasn’t entirely unpleasant.
“AAARGHHH!!!”
“What on earth are you doing?! What grievance do you have to commit such an atrocity against us so suddenly?”
The King, now panicking, barely managed to finish his protest before I swept his legs out from under him, sending him sprawling to the floor.
I glared at the writhing worms in the room and roared:
“Why am I doing this? You know better than anyone why, you pathetic excuses for rulers! You plunged us into a war for the most idiotic reason imaginable, making us endure ten years of hell!”
I released the broken jawbone, shoving the Crown Prince away so he toppled over. Planting my boot squarely on his chest, I pressed down hard.
“You sent hundreds of thousands to their deaths as cannon fodder, but you never bothered to explain why we had to fight! I had to go to the Empire to hear it myself—to learn what your wretched son did there!”
“You were invited as guests, and what did your brat do? You turned the Imperial Palace into a brothel! Attempted to assault the Imperial Princess! And then ran away without so much as an apology! After pulling a stunt like that, you demanded we lay down our lives in loyalty to the Crown?!”
As I applied a bit more pressure, I heard the satisfying sound of bones creaking beneath my boot.
I stopped just short of breaking them entirely—not out of mercy, but because I wouldn’t let this scum escape justice with something as simple as fractured ribs.
Ten years. It had been ten long years.
“Ten years! Ten goddamn years! I’ve spent my entire adult life on this war! Kids barely in their teens—who should’ve been dreaming about their futures—died without ever having the chance to live.”
“Those who survived? They came back crippled, their minds shattered, turned into shadows of the people they could’ve been. And it’s all because of you!”
“You ruined our lives! Because you, drunk on your own arrogance, let your filthy whims dictate the course of history! Ten years we could have spent building families, finding careers, doing anything meaningful with our lives—wasted, all of it!”
“And now you’re angry at me? Don’t make me laugh. This is entirely your doing! If you’d shown even an ounce of responsibility, if you’d behaved with even a shred of common decency, none of this would have happened!”
“There wouldn’t have been a coup. I wouldn’t be here in this palace, beating this pathetic excuse of a royal to death! It’s all because of you!”
I drew a pistol from my coat, aimed it downward, and pulled the trigger.
Bang!
“Urgh!”
I didn’t put a hole in the Crown Prince’s body. Instead, I merely removed a particularly protruding part of his anatomy—the one responsible for reproduction.
To put it simply, I shot off his genitals.
“Be grateful. I’ve done humanity a favor by ensuring someone like you can’t produce any more offspring.”
Sure, the ones he already has can’t be undone, but at least I can stop him from bringing more into the world. It’s for the future of humanity, after all.
“Now I see. I was a fool. You lot aren’t even worthy of being called human. Except for the so-called ‘good blood’ running through your veins, you’re no better than the scum rotting in a prison cell. Hell, a monkey or chimpanzee would do a better job on the throne than you lot.”
I tossed the gun to the ground and unsheathed my sword.
My blade, stained a permanent reddish hue from all the lives it had taken, glinted ominously.
This wasn’t supposed to happen.
This wasn’t the plan.
But none of that mattered anymore.
My mind was a haze, incapable of thinking clearly.
The only thought left was this: the enemies of my comrades and subordinates deserved justice.
“So I’ll clean this mess up once and for all. Go to hell and beg for forgiveness from the soldiers you sent to their deaths.”
I raised the blade high toward the ceiling, preparing to bring it down in one clean motion.
I intended to strike both the Queen, who had moved to shield her son, and the Crown Prince simultaneously.
But just as I was about to swing, an unexpected intruder burst in and seized me.
“No, you mustn’t, sir!”
“…Young Lady?”
Why is she here?
“I understand how you feel, but you can’t do this! If you kill the royals like this, it’ll cause chaos we won’t be able to control. Even if they deserve death, it has to be through a trial! Please, put down your weapon!”
“Understand?”
I scoffed. That flimsy attempt at empathy was too laughable to take seriously.
“You don’t understand. You have no idea what kind of hell we’ve been through! You, who have lived your whole life in comfort within the capital or your family’s estate, dare to talk about understanding? Don’t insult me!”
I grabbed Lady von Arschach by the collar, yanking her close.
She choked and gasped for air, but I shouted straight into her face.
“War was just ‘news’ to you, wasn’t it? Something you heard in royal decrees or gossip in social circles! But to us, it was ‘reality’—every single day of every single year!”
“Do you know what that means? While you were sitting on your couch, casually listening to stories about fortresses being captured or prisoners being taken, my comrades and I were out there, bleeding and dying to make those reports possible.”
“For every single victory you might have heard as gossip, we sacrificed thousands, even tens of thousands, of lives. We killed and were killed to achieve it! Don’t you dare act like you understand the suffering of war when you’ve never even–”
I couldn’t finish.
She wrapped her arms around me, despite her ragged breaths, forcing me into a reluctant embrace.
“Yes, you’re right. As a woman who was never allowed near the battlefield, I can’t possibly understand how much you or the other officers have suffered. Not unless I had fought alongside you, and I know I never will.”
She slowly lifted her head to meet my gaze, her tear-filled eyes glistening with a profound sadness.
“But… at the very least, I can comfort you. I can try to ease your anger, even if only for a moment. So please… put down your weapon and calm yourself. I’ll take on all your sorrow and pain—whatever it takes.”
“…Even so…”
“Don’t let your emotions ruin the bigger picture. You’ve already lost so much—do you really want to lose another ten years to a single moment of rage?”
The young lady gave orders to the guards, who carefully took the sword from my hand.
Then, seeing me collapse in utter exhaustion and despair, she gently supported me.
“Let’s go back, sir. You can think about punishing the royal family later, once you’ve had time to cool down.”
“She’s right, sir,” one of my subordinates added. “Please, take a moment to calm yourself. We’ll handle things here.”
“After some rest and sleep, you’ll feel better, sir,” another chimed in.
Her soft, guiding hand pulling me outside and my subordinates’ firm but concerned intervention left me with no choice.
I couldn’t push further and had to retreat, for now.