This was the moment when the battle between the Rebels, attempting to invade the Royal Capital, and the forces of Giliphos, who stood to block them before the Castle Walls, was in full swing.
*Phwak—!*
Giliphos swung his mace from the front line.
With a menacing sound of rushing wind, three or four men were sent flying at once.
"Giliphos! They called you the only hope of a decaying Baldina, but that was all a lie. Can't you see the suffering people?!"
One of the Rebels shouted toward him.
The intent was to attack Giliphos's reputation and break his morale.
"The people, you say? All I see are cutthroats who have caught the scent of money!"
Instead, the surrounding insurgents, terrified by Giliphos as he rampaged like a fierce tiger, flinched and drew back.
"You—you! If you're that old, you should just get in a coffin and sleep! What are you doing?! Are you going to be shaken by a mere handful of private soldiers? We outnumber them more than ten to one!"
Horols, hearing Giliphos's thunderous roar, jumped up and down in a panic.
"What are you doing! Kill him! Kill that old man!"
A volley of arrows was fired simultaneously at Giliphos as he swung his mace.
Just then, a knight rushed forward and blocked Giliphos's front, raising a shield.
*Woosh.* The arrows falling onto the shield all had their fletchings snapped.
In the brief moment before the shield was raised, someone on horseback had swung a sword and cut down all the arrows.
"Dianzel!"
Giliphos was startled to discover the familiar figure atop the horse.
"Master, why are you out here? And who are all these bastards?"
"Dianzel! You, who should be on the battlefield attending His Majesty—how are you here?!"
He was an opponent one could never encounter by chance in the current Baldina.
"Do not worry. Is there any reason other than one why we could be standing here so perfectly fine?"
"Could it be... has the war ended?"
A mixture of shock and joy laced the end of Giliphos's words.
"Yes, we have won. We have reclaimed the peoples of the plains."
Dianzel gave a wide smirk.
"His Majesty is also on his way. I came ahead with a scout unit to check the situation at the Royal Capital, but I didn't expect to run into a battle suddenly."
Even as he spoke, his eyes were sharp as he glared at the Rebels' flags.
"Is it a civil uprising?"
Giliphos, having heard the news of victory, quickly wiped away the tears shimmering between his wrinkles and answered.
"Not exactly. Insurgent elements released by a man who lost his wits for power are mixed in."
"What? Exactly who!"
Dianzel knit his brows. Then he paused, a thought occurring to him.
"...She was never such a bold child. This is the first time she has ever sent me a letter like this. Something must have happened to Dea."
'Was this what His Majesty meant when he said not to announce the victory? The reason Princess Her Highness changed so suddenly...'
"While we were away, what on earth has been happening in Baldina?"
At Dianzel’s question, Giliphos snorted.
"Oh, many things have happened. Just like the enemies of the plains, demonic hands hidden in human skin are prowling everywhere here as well."
"..."
His expression hardening, Dianzel aimed his bow toward the Rebels once more.
His gaze remained fixed on Giliphos.
*Ping—!* From the distance where the arrow flew, a scream of "Argh!" echoed like an answer.
"No wonder. I thought the way those guys embedded among the commoners used their blades was too practiced; they're mercenaries who've taken money."
Having lived many years only on the battlefield, he immediately recognized the presence of disguised mercenaries within the Rebels.
'We were away for too long.'
Dianzel was both enraged and lamenting.
An empty throne and news of victory that grew more distant by the day. It was enough time for someone to harbor vain ambitions.
"Is it by chance the Regent Duke?"
Despite his master’s cryptic words, Dianzel grasped the core of the matter instantly.
It was like a general's instinct to identify the enemy even amidst a massive crowd.
When Giliphos answered with a smile instead, Dianzel ground his teeth.
'That greedy wolf. He finally bares his fangs.'
As if sensing its master's heart, Dianzel’s red horse snorted menacingly.
"But there is nothing to worry about. That man will never get what he wants."
Giliphos glanced at the Rebels who were hesitating in fear.
As some even began to desert the front lines, the leader shouted at the top of his lungs.
'Princess Medeia told me to let them march right up to the Castle Walls.'
The Princess's instructions were only to prevent those Rebels from scaling the Royal Capital. If he terrified them too much, they might retreat too far away.
Giliphos, who had briefly cast his gaze toward the distant white Castle Walls, soon shouted thunderously.
"This is enough! We are withdrawing now!"
"Yes! Master!"
Giliphos’s elite knights quickly pulled back from the battlefield.
Their formation remained remarkably undisturbed, showing just how well-trained they were.
"Master, this is a pathetic force mixed with commoners and mercenaries. Why do we not finish those before us first and enter the Royal Palace?"
Dianzel, just as Giliphos once had, did not hide the fact that he could not understand the bizarre command.
However, Giliphos instead asked an unexpected question.
"Dianzel, how many Agema did you bring with the scout unit?"
"Pardon? About twenty. I didn't bring many to ensure His Majesty's protection."
The corners of Giliphos’s mouth rose with satisfaction.
"That should be enough. You and I have a place to go for a moment."
He pointed to a small village outside the Royal Capital.
"The Castulo Grand Duke’s forces are hidden in that village. Seeking to get a foothold in this country."
"What? What do you mean by that, Master?"
Seeing Dianzel’s expression of total incomprehension, Giliphos recalled the Princess’s letter.
[The remaining forces of the Castulo Grand Duke, who was recently expelled from the Royal Palace, will be staying in Baldina.
Since they will seize the opportunity to intervene in the coup to exert influence, I hope the Marquis will crush them and drag them out to show the true face of Kazen to the whole world.]
Immediately after receiving the letter, he had secretly tracked the Grand Duke’s traces.
Just as the Princess predicted, the Castulo Grand Duke had not left Baldina but was secretly moving back and forth to the Claudio Duke Family.
And a short while later, a large number of disguised individuals entered Baldina. They were men who boasted a level of skill incomparable to the Rebels.
Giliphos realized they were the secret subordinates serving the Castulo Grand Duke.
'The Grand Duke’s subordinates were helping the Rebels from behind even when they attacked the Royal Palace earlier.'
Though they had hidden themselves again to avoid being discovered when Giliphos appeared.
'If Princess Medeia hadn't warned me in advance, I would have had the Royal Capital stolen right from under my nose without even knowing it was stained with Kazen's poison.'
Would a coup succeeded through the Empire's help truly belong to Baldina?
It was no different from a declaration to become the Empire's puppet.
'Does that Claudio wretch care for nothing as long as he usurps the throne! What is to become of the future of this country...!'
Giliphos shuddered at the Regent Duke’s selfishness, yet simultaneously trembled with the anticipation of crushing that selfishness.
"In a little while, when the signal comes, we will go to that hill and launch a surprise attack on the Grand Duke’s forces. Of course, we had no idea they were Kazen people and thought they were in league with the Rebels. Since they're hiding like rats, it's only natural for us to be mistaken, isn't it?"
Dianzel was merely bewildered by his master’s words, which mixed future and past tenses.
"Master, I really can't understand what you're saying—"
"You dimwit. Just remember to crush them. It is Princess Her Highness’s command."
"Princess Her Highness?"
Dianzel’s eyes flew open at Giliphos’s answer.
Does our Princess Her Highness, who looked far out into the distant battlefield, have another plan?
He immediately dropped his dissatisfied expression and nodded.
"If that is the case, we must act at once."
"You... did you get hit in the head by a rock on the battlefield...?"
For this stubborn man to accept so submissively? As Giliphos faltered, his disciple answered.
"Master, you don't know, do you? If it weren't for Princess Her Highness, we would all be dead."
"What?"
"I'll tell you the details once this is over. You won't believe it."
Giliphos snorted.
"Hmph, do you think unbelievable things only happened to you? I have plenty to say as well, you brat."
