Teresa hurried to the scene without pause.
She found the President of the Tax Collectors’ Guild, the Chief Constable, and a whole crowd of conspirators already tightly bound, kneeling in humiliation under the watchful eyes of the city guards, all arrogance gone from their faces.
In the basement, the cramped corridors were lined with iron-barred windows. A foul, bloody stench hung heavy in the air. Young girls, scantily dressed with rags barely covering their bodies, sat huddled in filth, their eyes empty and lifeless in their cells.
“So this is what you call protecting the people?”
Teresa pointed furiously at the President of the Tax Collectors’ Guild. “I simply cannot understand it. Just to win the support of the orcs, you’d even sell out your own kin? All your talk of honor and duty—was it all nothing but empty words from the very start?”
Her Royal Highness’s voice echoed through the long corridor.
Yet faced with irrefutable evidence, the President of the Tax Collectors’ Guild and the Chief Constable—stripped of any will to resist—remained unmoved, simply glaring coldly at Teresa, sneering at her righteous reproach.
A tense atmosphere lingered in the dungeon.
Drip, drip.
A few drops of condensation fell, producing a steady, rhythmic sound.
“Your Highness, there’s no one else here. There’s no need to keep up appearances.”
Finally, the President of the Tax Collectors’ Guild, who was related by blood to the Governor, spoke up. “Winners become kings, losers become outlaws, that’s all there is to it. We lost today, but tomorrow… you might end up just like us.”
Bang!
Colonel Raine, livid at these words, seized the President of the Tax Collectors’ Guild and slammed him hard against the ground.
“Shut up! You betrayed your own people, you’re worse than pigs and dogs. Are you saying we’re the same?!”
Having regained his confidence after their resounding victory, Raine now cared more than anyone about the honor and dignity of his brothers-in-arms, and would not tolerate a few slavers spouting nonsense.
“Heh, Raine, who are you trying to fool? Just trying to show your loyalty to your new master, aren’t you?”
The President of the Tax Collectors’ Guild seemed ready to burn all bridges, casting a sinister glare at Raine. “Everyone knows you’ve only survived all these years by paying the Barbarian Tribute. And don’t think I don’t know how you got transferred from the imperial elite to this godforsaken border outpost.”
“Your Highness!” Whether out of spite or because he had nothing left to lose, the President suddenly shouted, “You must be quite proud to have gained such a useful dog just months after arriving at the fortress, right?”
“But I bet you don’t know, Raine—this fickle, despicable cur—just how he betrayed his former master, ended up shunned by the army, and was forced to crawl here, do you?”
Raine’s face froze at these words.
All his previous bluster evaporated the moment the President finished speaking, his confidence vanishing like smoke.
“How do you know…” Raine muttered through gritted teeth.
The Betrayal of the Former Master?
According to imperial tradition, the word “lord” carried two meanings.
One referred to the relationship between all subjects and His Majesty the Emperor; the other described the bond between patron and client, subordinate vassal and superior noble, student and teacher—an allegiance built on favors received.
Though not written in the Imperial Edict, this custom was of great consequence in high society.
Once branded with the label of “Betrayal of the Former Master,” at best one would be ostracized; at worst, they would suffer total social death, never able to stand in society again.
Even Raine—who claimed not to care for rules or commandments—felt a cold dread in his heart after his secret was exposed, casting a furtive glance at Teresa.
Damn that scum!
Colonel Raine’s anger surged, but his resolve faltered.
Memories flooded his mind.
In a torrential downpour, an aged, sorrowful face stared at Raine in heartbreak.
“The Ministry of War has issued my dismissal, Raine. Congratulations…” The old man in the General’s uniform gave a bitter smile. “You succeeded in bringing me down and getting your old superior promoted. Well done.”
There was no sarcasm in the old man’s voice—only a helpless resignation that words could not express.
“No, Commander!” Raine shook his head wildly in panic. “I-I didn’t report you! I just… just hesitated over the Battle Plan, that’s all!”
“No need to explain, Raine. I know what you want. Besides, a commoner reaching Major is already the pinnacle. To climb higher, you have to pay a special price.”
Click.
The old General pulled a crystal-powered pistol from his pocket and pressed it to his temple.
“Wait, Commander!”
Bang!
Blood and brains sprayed across the office desk.
The scene faded to black.
Yes, I—Raine—am a despicable traitor.
For the sake of promotion, I betrayed my old superior, the Count who cared nothing for my humble birth and still raised me up.
I’m not worthy to walk the path to glory under Her Highness…
“Colonel Raine?”
As Raine was lost in his memories, a gentle voice snapped him back to reality.
Pat.
He felt a light tap on his shoulder and turned to see the irreverent bard, Green, gazing at him.
“No matter what, we believe in you.”
Green said, “And so does Her Highness.”
“Yes, Raine.”
Teresa nodded firmly, paying no heed to what the President of the Tax Collectors’ Guild had just said. She spoke to Raine with conviction, “No matter what really happened back then, at least just now, we all fought with everything we had to protect everyone. As long as we have that, the rest is nothing but passing clouds.”
“Hahaha!”
The Chief Constable burst out laughing. “Look, Your Highness, this is your so-called justice? In the end, aren’t you just eliminating rivals for the throne? If you’re going to kill us, then do it. Why put on a righteous face?”
“No, we’re not like you.”
Green retorted solemnly, “Everyone makes mistakes, but there’s a world of difference between minor wrongs and great sins, between true remorse and still making excuses at death’s door.”
“For example, collaborating with the barbarians—Colonel Raine and the others did pay the Barbarian Tribute out of necessity, but what was their intention?”
Green analyzed coldly, “It was to protect the borderlands from war. And you? You did the opposite!”
“To help the Second Prince seize the throne, you trampled the most basic human decency, turning your own people into slaves to be given away to foreign nobles for their pleasure.”
Green stepped forward, pressing in, “You are gravely mistaken. All that awaits you is the judgment of justice!”
“Justice?” The Chief Constable still stubbornly denied it. “In all my years enforcing the law, I’ve never seen such a thing!”
Thud, thud.
As the two argued fiercely, hurried footsteps approached.
It was Deputy Commander Martin.
He rushed anxiously to Princess Teresa’s side.
“Your Highness, a message from the Imperial Capital.” Martin presented a communication crystal and explained, “It’s from the Second Prince.”
“The Second Prince!” Like drowning men clutching at straws, the President of the Tax Collectors’ Guild and the Chief Constable exchanged glances and laughed in wild delight. “Hahaha, we were right to trust him. The Second Prince has come to save us!”
The Chief Constable glared venomously at Green. “Weren’t you just ranting about justice? Let’s see if you can defy the Second Prince in the Western Provinces!”
As if to confirm his words, the moment the communication crystal connected, the Imperial Edict carried the Second Prince’s affected, theatrical voice.
“Heh, I have to wonder, dear sister—where did you find yourself a Legendary Follower?”
The Second Prince turned his gaze to Green.
“Instead of following a castoff stripped of her inheritance, why not join me?”
He waved his hand dismissively, paying no heed to Teresa’s fury. “Serve me, and your future will be limitless. When I ascend to the throne, you’ll have all the power, wealth, and fame you could wish for!”
“Not to mention, you seem to belong to the Warrior System? I happen to have a few Warrior Class Scrolls…”
Faced with the Second Prince’s enticing offers, Green merely smiled lightly.
“My apologies, Your Highness.” Green shrugged indifferently. “But I’m just not interested in swearing loyalty to a so-called lord who has to rely on foreign aid to fight for the throne.”
He glanced meaningfully at the Chief Constable and the others.
“You!” The Second Prince flew into a rage. “Very well, that’s just what I wanted to say… I’ve already notified the Western Governor to lock down your entire border region—no supplies in or out…”
“No matter how powerful a Legendary Follower is, can you conjure food from thin air?” He snorted, looking triumphantly at the group.
“Second Brother!”
Teresa accused angrily, “Do the common people mean nothing to you but pawns for your power struggle?”
“Of course not, my foolish sister.” The Second Prince giggled. “The commoners aren’t even worthy to be called pawns. At best, they’re like rice in the fields—harvest one crop, and you can always plant another.”
“Of course.” Before Teresa could continue, the Second Prince suddenly changed his tone. “If you handle this matter as I wish, I might be magnanimous enough to forgive your offense.”
He glanced at the Chief Constable and the others.
“Whew!” The Chief Constable let out a breath of relief.
Saved!
Wonderful, the Second Prince really hasn’t abandoned me!
The President of the Tax Collectors’ Guild beside him was just as elated, his despair instantly replaced by excitement.
“To think you’d endanger the nation and its people just to keep these scum alive?”
Teresa gripped her imperial sword, her heart full of grief and anger.
Father, Second Brother… they’ve both changed.
“Who said I want them alive?”
At that moment, the Second Prince spoke again, casting a strange look at Teresa.
“Huh?” Teresa’s eyes widened in confusion. “Didn’t you just say that unless we handled things properly, you’d…”
“That’s right.” The Second Prince nodded. “By ‘properly handle things,’ I mean kill everyone who knows the truth—don’t let them stain my good name.”
With that, he shot a look of utter contempt at the Chief Constable and the President of the Tax Collectors’ Guild. “A pack of useless fools—can’t even handle such a trivial matter, yet dare claim to share my burdens?”
With the Second Prince’s words, everyone in the dungeon felt a chill in the air.
Yet harsher than any physical cold was the lingering dread in their hearts.