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Chapter 173

On that day, Ibertes, the man put in charge of one of the garrisons in Elkeney, the city conquered by the Romal Empire, was in a very bad mood.

The other day, Ibertes had to report to his superior at the governor-general’s office that he and his subordinates had lost consciousness and been tied up at the side of the road leading into the city, and because of that report, his superior now had terrible doubts about him.

It wasn’t just Ibertes, but everyone was making money off of the third class subjects living in Elkeney.

A soldier is someone who protects the order and peace of Elkeney every day, and is an existence that shows the authority of the Romal Empire as a conqueror, and their benevolence for allowing the other races to survive, so what problem is there with receiving a few extra benefits outside of those stipulated by his job?

Not to mention, it is something that has been recognized by the governor-general for decades, even centuries. Because of that, Ibertes’s superior did not reprimand him too much.

At most, it was just a few superficial words made to keep up appearances. However, the problem was that Ibertes’s description of what had attacked them sounded too much like nonsense.

Ibertes left the governor-general’s office, and returned to the office where his garrison was usually stationed. He sat down roughly on the chair in his office and tapped his fingers on the desk with all his strength, in order to distract himself, even just for a little bit, from his irritation.

Ibertes’s face twisted with rage as he stood in this room, surrounded by all the undeserved furnishings he had collected with the money he had amassed over many years through extortion of the citizens, disguised as “goodwill donations.”

At that time, their targets were these strong red bear and deer beast people, who were escorting an old couple of the Elken race, along with the Dragonians of the phantom race who came to assist them.

Even though he had reported the exact names that they had called each other by, his superior asserted that there was no record of such people ever entering or leaving Elkeney, and he was scorned that maybe it had all just been his own daydream.

Ibertes clenched his fists trembling in shame, and he vowed to definitely catch those fools called “Dangadda” and “Lips,” or else he would never be able to restore his lost reputation. He swore he would get his revenge.

However, he will never know, for the rest of his life, that all of his subordinates, including Ibertes himself, had their memories of what happened that day altered by Dran, replaced with random faces and false names.

Ibertes has no taste for me, so he swore he would put every last one of his captives through a hell of torture, using them as punching bags, or he would sell them off to his favorite slave traders as cheap labor.

While Ibertes was putting the blame on someone who may or may not have actually been there, over and over again in his heart, he heard hurried, running footsteps from outside his office, and then his door was opened without even any time spared to knock, as a familiar subordinate of his came rushing in.

「C-Commander!」

「What do you want, you’re too noisy! If you’re going to come in, then knock first. Can you really call yourself a proud soldier of the Romal Empire like that? I’ll punish you with a beating!」

The subordinate knew that Ibertes might very well actually do that, so he hurriedly straightened his back while still out of breath, and saluted with his fist pressed to the center of his chest.

「Yes, I-I apologize. However, an urgent, extremely dangerous situation has arisen!」

Just as his subordinate understands Ibertes’s personality, Ibertes also knows that his subordinates know how to deal with him. If his subordinate is in this much of a panic, then he knows there must really be an emergency situation, and he manages to calm down and prepare to listen.

「What happened, tell me.」

Ibertes decided that if what his subordinate says isn’t that big of a problem, he would take it out on him by pulling out all of his teeth with his own hands, but what his subordinate reported to him was enough to dispel his irritation.

「There is currently a rebellion going on in various parts of Elkeney, led by the third class subjects! It is believed to be the rebel group of Elkens who have been previously rumored to exist for some time now.

They’ve attacked mainly the slave traders’ mansions, freeing over hundreds of slaves! In response, the third class subjects have taken up arms and are attacking our station. The second and first class subjects are coming into the governor-general’s office in droves, seeking protection. The governor-general has given a direct order to sortie as quickly as possible!」

「Wha-, a rebellion, you say!? That’s impossible, besides the governor-general’s office, the empire’s army is nearby as well. Normal citizens who have no training nor proper weapons should have no chance of winning.

Those third class subjects, they must want to kill themselves off as a race! Fine, I’ll help them meet their deaths, those bastards!!」

＊

After we released all the people imprisoned in various parts of Elkeney, we returned to our rooms at the inn and discussed how we would deal with the changes to the situation. That’s when Yachiyo and Fuuko, who had gone to the Adventurers’ Guild to gather information, returned in a panic.

Normally, they try to keep their footsteps quiet, but this time, maybe because the scale of this situation was too large, they arrived with their footsteps thumping loudly.

「Dran, Dran, Dran, it’s bad, very bad! The whole city’s so, so tense, and the atmosphere out there is so scary, the hairs on the back of my neck are all standing up on end! See, look at it」

Yachiyo, who opened the door and entered the room in a fluster, even went to the trouble of showing me the goosebumps on the nape of her neck, just to explain to me exactly how menacing the atmosphere in the city was.

Yachiyo wasn’t the only one affected by the unusual atmosphere in the city, the abundant fur on Fuuko’s tail was standing up also, as she began to talk about what they saw and heard.

「Just as Hachi said, most of the citizens are fearfully hiding inside their own homes, but those who have been dissatisfied with the way the empire has treated them have taken up arms and are teaming up.

After you and everyone saved us, there is no doubt that those who have been looking for an opportunity to rebel saw this as a chance, and they rose up in rebellion all at once」

The above was a good summary of what the two of them were barking at me incessantly about. Fumu, it’s pretty quiet outside of the inn, but the place where the commotion is happening must be more tumultuous.

For me, His Highness, Shald, or Dramina, we felt no anxiety or impatience since what we expected to happen had unfortunately just happened.

But Selina, who is used to fighting demons and such things, wasn’t afraid, but since she has never experienced a situation like this before, she looked a little worried.

Diadora was as composed and elegant as ever, while Lynette seemed to be determined to act as my golem no matter what the situation, so the two of them were the same as always.

As expected, the ones who were the most panicked were just Yachiyo and Fuuko.

Selina took the pitcher of water that was provided with the room, poured it into wooden cups, and handed them to Yachiyo and Fuuko.

「Yachiyo, Fuuko, for now, drink some water and catch your breath, okay?」

「Mm, thank you, Selina」

「You’re a great help. My throat is so parched, it stings」

As soon as they received the cups from Selina, they drank the whole cup down in one go without taking a single breath, and then let out a big sigh afterward.

After waiting for them to calm down and catch their breath, we looked down at the map of the surrounding area spread out on top of the round table.

This map shows the roads that stretch out from Elkeney into all directions, including all the large cities and small villages that lie beyond those roads.

Although we achieved our goal of rescuing the victims of the human trafficking, now this whole region of Elkeney has risen in revolt against the Romal Empire, so we should think about what our next course of action will be.

The one who started the conversation was His Highness.

The Arkrest Kingdom does not interfere much with the area of Elkeney, but they did dispatch a secret agent to gather information, so before Yachiyo and Fuuko had returned, they had already received some information from the agent.

「Was this uprising spontaneous, or was it premeditated? At the same time when we skillfully attacked the mansions of the slave traders and rescued everyone, the soldiers inside the city moved to suppress them, so it might be safe to assume it’s the latter」

「Fumu, if it is the latter, then they are taking action while thinking that they have a chance of winning. If this was simply an act of resentment, then we will have no choice but to face the disastrous consequences, but I pray that doesn’t happen」

If the rebel army were to be defeated by the empire here, then it would not be surprising if all those involved in the rebellion were executed without any mercy, including all their relatives, and all the following generations would be forced to live even more difficult lives.

My values as a commoner have been so ingrained in me that I sympathize emotionally with the rebel army and support them, but I am a citizen of Arkrest Kingdom now. Intervening in the events taking place here in the Romal Empire would not be looked well upon.

His Highness brought his left hand up to his chin and made it look like he was thinking deeply, before he asked Yachiyo and Fuuko a question.

「Yachiyo, Fuuko, how were the rest of the adventurers doing? Were there any notifications from the guild?」

「Um, the people at the guild right now were called to assist the rebel army!

The guild we belong to consists of third class subjects and people from foreign places, so it’s only natural that they would support the rebellion.

But since we’re newcomers who just got here, they’ve mostly overlooked us. Most of them have accepted the request, but there are also still people who are holding off」

Fumu, I do think that was important information, but I was glad that she told us that before I even had to ask.

Yachiyo only answered His Highness’s question honestly, but Fuuko seemed to notice His Highness’s true intentions, and added her own reply.

「The adventurers and mercenaries who are known to likely join the empire’s side were requested by name by various guilds, so that they would all be outside the city during this time. Recently, I’ve thought that there’s been an unusually large number of them, but that must have been in preparation for this day, now that I think about it」

I see, so the guilds all rebelled in cooperation. In that case, this fight in Elkeney and everything that happens after was all they were focusing on. It seems the rebel leader or his assistants has someone who can see the future.

His Highness suddenly started pointing at each of the major cities surrounding Elkeney one by one, and began to speak his mind.

「Starting with Elkeney, the southern part is filled with the spirit of Anti-Imperialism. Abarzago, to the west of here, and Yuyunekki, to the south, are both cities that have been looking for the right time to escape from the empire’s control. Their concerns include not just the garrisons stations in their respective cities, but also the reinforcements from other imperial forces in the surrounding areas.

One way to defend against that is to cooperate with each other and coordinate a rebellion, and make sure that each of the imperial forces in their own cities will have their hands full. 」

「I see, so Leon, you think that the uprising isn’t occurring only here in Elkeney, but also in the surrounding cities, or maybe even throughout the whole entire southern part of the empire?」

In response to my question, His Highness nodded his head seriously. He must have imagined himself in the rebels’ shoes, and thought about what they would have to do to make this uprising a success.

「This area is under the influence of the Grand Duke. Even if Anti-Imperialists voices were to rise, it won’t do much to harm the princess. Rather, it would make them want to revolt even more.

I wouldn’t even be surprised to find out that she was supporting or inciting the rebellion herself. I would even encourage her to be allies or neutrals to the rebels against the Grand Duke, in exchange for giving them autonomy in the South.

If I can come up with something like this, then that princess with her broader perspective should be looking at the flow of trends over time.」

「So that means that the empire would have to suppress the uprisings in each of the cities with only the local forces.

For those of us who are trying to escape to the Kingdom, this turmoil within the empire is a good opportunity.

So, what shall we do? Or rather, I should ask, what do you want to do?」

In a way, it was a statement that placed all the responsibility for our future actions on His Highness, but he answered without sounding particularly agitated. He is already well prepared to bear the weight of responsibility on his shoulders.

「It’s good that we can leave the people who were captured with the rebels, but now we’re in a situation where we can’t just leave them be in each city.

To put it more bluntly, we can welcome the fact that the empire is still in a state of disarray right now. My real intention is that I want this rebellion to succeed. I can’t help out in the open, but if it’s behind the scenes, then I don’t mind」

「You really don’t mind?」

When I thought I should at least ask to make sure, His Highness made a troubled smile, as if to say not to pile on so many questions. I’m really asking if it won’t become a big problem for the prince of a neighboring country which is not yet hostile to the empire, to aid in this rebellion.

「Let’s just say I don’t. Originally, we should have already left Elkeney long ago, but we’ve already come this far, so I want to stay involved a while longer」

「We have to work as hard as we can to make sure your face and name isn’t remembered by any of the people participating in the rebellion, but that’s a tall order to fulfill」

「I do think I’m the one making it difficult for us. By the way, Yachiyo and Fuuko, I made you two listen up until now, but what will you two do from here? It doesn’t seem like you have plans to either support the rebellion or side with the empire, right?」

Yachiyo and Fuuko don’t know His Highness’s true name or status yet, nor has he clearly stated that he is from the Arkrest Kingdom.

Just like with those Imperial soldiers, I didn’t want any information to leak that would require me to mess with their memories. Besides, because of how laidback these two are, it seems they weren’t aware of how dangerous the situation really was.

「We originally had plans to leave this place, so that is no different from having to leave so quickly. It’s not like I have a partner who I have a relationship with here, not to mention, as outsiders who came from overseas, we feel out of place here…」

「Hachi is right. Even if the major powers in the surrounding area were to unite against the empire, like you said, Leon, I would not want to be involved in that war at all. So, I talked about it with Hachi, and…」

「No, Fuuko, let me say it. Ahem, Dran, Leon, actually, the two of us together have a request to make」

Well, then, it seems these two have something on their minds, but is it really something that they have to make a request to us so formally? In front of our eyes, they both got on their hands and knees on the floor and bowed their heads deeply.

「Take me and Fuuko together with you outside of Elkeney, please!」

「Please!」