“Run, you lazy slugs! Swing those whips harder!!”
“We’re already doing that, so stop nagging, will you!”
“The horses haven’t started foaming at the mouth yet!! That means they still have energy left, so keep whipping them!”
The pursuit force ran at nearly the maximum speed transportation of this era could achieve.
By alternating between reserve horses, they avoided exhaustion and pushed their mobility to the limit, practically driving the animals to their breaking point.
Their vigor was so immense that even in the late winter, with the ground frozen solid, they kicked up clouds of dust.
It was a side effect of their full-speed forced march, which strained roads, horses, and people alike to their limits.
“Ugh… Guh! Is… is this really okay?!”
“What are you talking about?”
“This speed! I’ve ridden horses a fair bit, but at this rate, they’ll all collapse in less than half a day!”
“Don’t worry! These beasts are tougher than you think and don’t tire easily! And if you don’t want to bite your tongue, stop blabbering—AARGH!—oh, too late, huh.”
True to their reputation as horsemen deeply attuned to their mounts, none of the riders fell behind.
However, the investigators traveling with them suffered a minor mishap—physical and mental exhaustion.
But in any case, their speed justified the means.
“That’s Münchausen ahead.”
“Are we conducting a search, Major?”
“Of course. Start by rounding up the ones we took testimony from earlier. We’ll interrogate them again.”
The pursuit force arrived in the village where the king’s party had dined and enjoyed their time by the water.
They stayed briefly, gathering evidence once again.
They spoke to the chef who had served food to the fugitives, inspected the spot where the carriage had been parked, and examined the places where the royals had relaxed.
They questioned nearby merchants about appearances and distinctive features, leaving no stone unturned to secure information for their report and any potential leads.
“In the meantime, resupply the water and feed the horses. We leave in two hours, so handle your meals and bathroom breaks on your own. The meeting point is here.”
“Yes, sir!”
“Don’t overeat. If you’re too full, your condition will suffer during the journey.”
“Don’t worry too much, sir. We’ve been through the grind in the north for years.”
After quickly recovering their stamina and easing some of their fatigue during the short rest, the pursuit force resumed their eastward advance.
Precisely one day and four hours later, they managed to catch up with the fugitives.
Thus, they reached the capital of the territory located between Münchausen and Varennes.
Despite having pushed the soldiers relentlessly with promises of reaching the goal, the major’s expression soured as the destination came into view.
“Damn it. What the hell is this?”
Originally, this wasn’t exactly a major city, but it was a decently bustling town.
It had everything—fancy clothing shops, jewelers, a market street—an elegant, compact city.
But what reaction could one possibly have when seeing such a town going up in flames?
And it wasn’t just some accidental fire. Chaos, destruction, and ruin were playing out like a symphony in real time.
“What on earth is going on?”
The major, reacting just as King Carl VII had two days earlier, clutched his head.
“Ugh…”
The situation was absolutely maddening, but he was still on a mission.
This wasn’t the time to stand there dumbfounded; he had to come up with a plan and take action.
“Long live Lord Royten! Long live the Revolutionary Army!”
“From now on, let’s pay taxes to the central government, not the lords!”
‘These slogans are… peculiar. Did some kind of conflict break out between the commoners and the nobility?’
Quickly regaining his composure, he surveyed the situation.
It seemed the lord’s manor had already been breached, and a few unidentified bodies were scattered around the plaza.
Judging by the signs, the uprising had long since succeeded, and the process of overturning the old ruling class was already complete.
From the looks of the villagers, they hadn’t exactly acted with restraint. It was obvious they had smashed, burned, and killed indiscriminately.
Valuable administrative documents, reports, and tax records had likely all been reduced to ashes.
‘Restoring order here is going to be a nightmare.’
He could already picture the administrative bureaucrats clutching their necks and frothing at the mouth. But he decided to ignore that for now.
After all, he was just a major—tedious administrative work wasn’t his responsibility.
What concerned him more was what to do about this place.
In its current state, getting supplies was out of the question, let alone cooperation for their investigation.
Would it be better to stop wasting time here and move on to another region to continue the search?
As he turned the idea over in his mind, something caught his eye—a large object pinned beneath the wreckage of a collapsed stable.
“What’s that?”
It was an elegant carriage.
Though painted black and free of any flashy decorations or embellishments, it was still a masterpiece, clearly crafted with a skilled artisan’s touch.
At a glance, it was obvious that such a carriage didn’t belong in a roadside inn or some shabby stable.
Could it belong to a wealthy noble or even royalty?
But then, why would it be decorated so modestly?
Unless there’s some reason they’re deliberately trying to keep a low profile… Ah!
“No way. Could it be? Were they also caught here?”
It didn’t take long for the major to deduce that the carriage likely belonged to the king’s party.
Having reached his conclusion, he immediately shouted orders to his troops.
“Everyone, arm yourselves! Quickly suppress the rioters and seal off the city—don’t let anyone escape! Our king is hiding here!”
“Are you sure about this?”
“You’ll know once we catch them, so stop yapping and move! Time is critical—get going, you fools!”
There was no way they would have sold such a fine carriage.
Even if they had wanted to, no one in a town like this could afford to buy it.
And they wouldn’t have abandoned it and fled on foot, especially with children in tow.
It was equally unlikely they would’ve been able to buy a new carriage in their current situation.
The conclusion was clear—the king’s party hadn’t left the city.
King Carl VII and his family had to be hiding somewhere within these walls.
“Well, this might just get me a promotion.”
Dreaming of a bright future and a swift reward for resolving the situation, the major personally took the lead in controlling the citizens.
A couple of hours later.
“What’s going on now?”
“Why are people claiming to be from the central army here…?”
The suppression was successfully completed in no time.
The appearance of a cavalry unit bearing the central army’s flag threw the citizens into confusion, and the soldiers took advantage of the moment to secure their cooperation.
Rather than resorting to force, they calmly asked the citizens to gather in one place for a short time, and the request was met with surprisingly little resistance.
Since the riot had initially been sparked by resentment toward the nobility, the citizens saw no reason to clash with the central forces unnecessarily.
“Quite the crowd we’ve got here.”
With the citizens calmed and gathered in the city’s central plaza, their number was estimated to be in the thousands.
Despite the casualties and injuries, it was still an impressive crowd.
“If we try to check each person one by one, it’ll take forever, won’t it?”
“No doubt about it.”
“Besides, only three people here actually know what the king or crown prince looks like—those investigators from the intelligence department.”
However, the problem remained: how could they identify the disguised and hidden royal family members among the crowd?
Unlike 21st-century Earth, where facial recognition technology or AI could help, such advancements were centuries away.
Even if they had portraits or composite sketches to compare, they hadn’t brought any—paintings in this era were typically on canvas, making them too bulky to carry around.
Leaving the task entirely to the investigators would also take all day without guaranteeing results.
During the French Revolution, King Louis XVI had his face engraved on currency, making identification relatively simple.
But unfortunately, the Kingdom of Ulranor didn’t have such a custom.
Their coins featured portraits of their founding king or the royal family’s coat of arms instead.
“What should we do about this?”
It wasn’t an impossible problem to solve, but it was certainly a vexing one.
At this moment, the major came up with an idea.
“Separate the women. Have them stand off to the side. Then, bring all the men over and have them urinate one by one.”
“…What?”
“The crown prince is a eunuch. His entire manhood—both the stones and the pillar—is gone, leaving him smooth down there like a woman. He wouldn’t be able to urinate properly, so we’ll spot him easily.”
Since the prince had been involuntarily castrated, a simple check of their lower body would make him impossible to miss.
It was such a simple yet effective idea.
“Once you find him, identify a man and a woman who resemble him. You should be able to figure that out even without having seen the royal family in person.”
Awestruck by the ingenuity of the plan, the soldiers divided the crowd into groups of ten to twenty people and began carrying out the test.
“Hey, why’s this guy standing so awkwardly?”
“Are you hiding something? Come on, drop your pants. If there’s nothing, we’ll let you go. Why are you stalling?”
It wasn’t long before the target was found—a pseudo-eunuch who couldn’t grasp anything but instead clutched at his thighs.
“We’ve got him! It’s this one!”
“Really? Hey, intelligence team, is this the crown prince?”
“Yes. His facial features match. He looks a little different from before, but there’s no doubt about it.”
The man trembled in fear, wetting himself as he quaked.
His shabby appearance made it hard to believe he was once the handsome heir to the throne.
The major, having secured the prince, ordered the soldiers to continue their search of the remaining crowd.
Sorting them was easy.
In this world, thanks to magic, the traits of parents were strongly inherited by their children, often making family members look nearly identical.
Even a quick glance could tell who was related to whom.
“We’ve got the queen!”
“The king is over here! We’ve found him!!”
And so, within just 30 minutes, the queen—who had been hiding with her children—and the king—accompanied by his mistress—were all dragged out together.
It was an anticlimactic end to the intense chase that had stretched on for days.
“Finally caught you. A pleasure to meet you, Your Majesty. I’m Major Alix of the 2nd Battalion, 4th Cavalry Regiment.”
His greeting, dripping with sarcasm, was met with silence.
That didn’t matter; he hadn’t expected a reply anyway.
“This is what happens when you run away and cause all this mess. If you’d just stayed put in the palace, you’d at least still be treated with dignity.”
He smiled coldly and continued.
“When we return to the capital, the council will decide your fate regarding this incident. Until then, behave yourself.”
The major, who had spoken formally but with not even a shred of respect in his tone, gave the order to confine the royal family.
“What should we do with them?”
“Tie them up so they can’t escape, commandeer a suitable house, and shove them in there. Leave them with enough water and food to get by.”
“No need for attendants or servants?”
“Why would we bother with that? That man’s already had all his authority and rights stripped away. At this point, he’s just a king in name only.”
Although they still had to call him “Your Majesty,” nothing else really mattered.
In the old days, his recent actions might have been considered treasonous for showing such disrespect, but now it was perfectly legal.
To someone who had consistently made foolish decisions, showing unnecessary consideration or respect wasn’t worth the effort.
“We’ve captured all the targets, so send the remaining civilians home and report to Central Command that the mission is complete.”
There were still some attendants around, but there was no value in apprehending them.
They weren’t high-ranking individuals or in any important positions—they were merely servants. Leaving them behind wouldn’t cause any significant issues.
Meanwhile, around the same time, at the border with the Kingdom of Kailas.
“From this point onward, no speaking in the language of the Holy Nation. Use the Kingdom’s language only. Understood?”
“Yes, sir!”
A group of unexpected visitors was attempting to cross over.