Ch.197Prologue

The collapse of the Imperial Palace had shocked and unsettled the citizens of the territory.

Leopold didn’t realize it at the time, but that day Isabella and Ernst had escaped the territory with their supporters—their original forces, the few Imperial Knights who survived that nightmare, and even Marquis Valenstein in tow.

They had sufficient justification.

Leopold had “revealed his wicked scheme” to the world, and Marquis Valenstein was injured. No one contradicted Ernst’s assertion that remaining in the territory would be too dangerous.

Their destination was the Benes territory in the southwestern Empire—the witch Isabella’s stronghold.

They hadn’t gone quietly either. While marching his troops toward Benes territory, Ernst officially proclaimed Leopold’s crimes throughout the Empire.

How Leopold had ordered his guard knight Hektor to assassinate Matthias and disguise it as the work of monsters.

How he had joined hands with the witch Ophelia and attempted to kill all imperial family members except himself during the palace attack.

And how he had ambushed Marquis Valenstein, who would have been his greatest obstacle, leaving him gravely wounded.

Ernst presented Hektor’s corpse and the remains of the insect knights as evidence. The “captured” attackers had also confessed under interrogation that they were acting on Leopold’s orders.

Though all the evidence was fabricated, it was enough to deceive the ignorant masses.

When news spread of the Ka’har advance from the east and the atrocities committed by Haschal, Leopold’s reputation plummeted further. Knights who had defected to Ernst’s faction competed to denounce Haschal’s horrors.

Valenstein also publicly declared the knights’ testimonies to be true. The words of the Empire’s Greatest Sword, who had fought in countless battles over decades, carried enough authority to convince even the skeptical.

Not everyone believed these claims and supported Ernst. However, it was sufficient justification to raise an army.

The rebellious prince Leopold. The man-eating demon Haschal. The witch Ophelia.

With a declaration to defeat these three criminals occupying the territory and bring peace and security, Ernst declared war against Leopold.

The cautious maintained neutrality, while the ambitious began weighing the benefits Leopold and Ernst might bring them.

And those who had been waiting outside the Empire rejoiced.

This was the prelude to a civil war that would engulf the entire Empire.

—-

“Civil war? Ernst has finally gone mad! Not content with slandering and trying to kill me, now he intends to overthrow the Empire by force!”

At the hastily convened court meeting, Leopold struck the armrest and roared upon hearing news of Ernst.

His outburst was clearly for the benefit of the nobles attending the meeting.

After all, Leopold himself knew well that Ernst was already Isabella’s puppet.

When he first heard that Isabella and Ernst had fled the territory, he had already anticipated a rebellion. Still, he couldn’t understand why they would choose a civil war with no chance of victory.

“Since Marquis Valenstein has taken their side, they must think they have a chance. That old man, what is he doing in his old age…”

Lord Wien sighed.

He had dispatched his knights to capture Ernst when he heard about the escape while en route to the territory. It wasn’t a bad decision. If Ernst could be captured there, the civil war would end before it began, and Lord Wien himself would become the greatest contributor.

Though Lord Wien wasn’t traveling with his full forces, he had brought his elite knights—six Masters and fifty knights. He thought this would be sufficient to defeat Ernst’s escort.

He had been concerned about Marquis Valenstein, but news that the Ghost Blade had been broken and severely injured by a young Master had led him to underestimate the old warrior.

‘At his age, even the great Valenstein must be weakening.’

The Empire’s Greatest Sword was just a past glory. The aging old man seemed beatable with six Masters. Even if they couldn’t win, they could at least delay him long enough to capture Ernst.

It was a miscalculation.

After two days, thanks to priests’ healing and potions poured like water, Valenstein’s injuries had almost completely healed.

The Ghost Blade revealed itself.

Having instantly lost one Master and twenty knights, Lord Wien had no choice but to retreat hastily. Fortunately, they were able to escape because Valenstein focused on protecting Ernst rather than pursuing them.

Since then, Lord Wien had entered the territory and was gathering troops from his domain.

“As death approaches, greed emerges. Whether for power or women.”

Leopold criticized Valenstein without restraint. To raise his allies’ morale, he needed to diminish the enemy’s reputation as much as possible.

Valenstein needed to be portrayed not as a noble knight who had protected the Empire for decades, but as an ugly old man who revealed his greed in his final years. From Leopold’s perspective, this wasn’t entirely untrue.

—-

Ernst’s rebellion began with the claim of destroying the “axis of evil.”

Leopold countered that Ernst was slandering him because he lacked confidence in winning the elector’s vote. He claimed Isabella was the real witch who had pinned her crimes on him.

He even revealed classified information about Haschal’s exile and her lineage as a descendant of the Great’s Twelve Knights, but unfortunately, the lack of evidence hampered him. Both proof that the empress was a witch and documents about Haschal were buried under marble rubble.

His mention of mana resistance had some effect, though. The fact that Haschal was resistant to mana had already been proven.

His defense questioned how someone blessed with anti-magic powers could possibly be an evil demon who devoured people. While he couldn’t completely dismiss the testimonies of Valenstein and the knights, he could at least create doubt.

Both sides had plausible justifications, and neither side’s claims were perfect. In the end, only weapons would determine the truth.

For the next five days, Leopold worked tirelessly. He requested Lord Wien to mobilize troops and persuaded the Duke of Faelrun to promise cooperation in suppressing Ernst’s rebellion.

He had to pledge to make Adelheid his empress after ascending to the throne and promise substantial northern support later, but this secured sufficient military power.

Those who had supported Leopold from the beginning also began gathering private armies to prepare for confrontation with Ernst’s forces. They neither believed Ernst’s claims nor had any other choice, having supported Leopold all along.

Unfortunately, he failed to bring in the Empire’s main standing army and the Imperial Knights.

They declared neutrality according to tradition, stating that both sides had reasonable claims and this was a civil war. They insisted that the Empire’s swords were meant to protect against external threats to imperial citizens’ safety, not to kill fellow imperials.

Leopold had to be satisfied with that much. At least they weren’t joining Ernst.

Thus, “Leopold’s Army” was formed.

The private armies of Leopold’s faction lords. The armies of Faelrun and Wien. With the addition of Landenburg’s eastern forces, it was a large enough army to defeat Ernst’s forces.

Until this point, the situation wasn’t so bad.

…Until this point.

—-

Haschal, who had been unconscious, woke up a week after the incident.

By then, the situation had already become unmanageable.

======[Haschal Aishan-Gioro. Possessed]======

“Uweeeeeeek!”

The first thing I did upon opening my eyes was empty the contents of my stomach.

I ended up soiling the infirmary floor with vomit, but anyone who knew my situation would understand.

I had seen everything.

So vividly I could still smell and taste it. I could still feel the sensation in my mouth—the bitterness of vitreous fluid flowing out as soft chunks of meat burst.

“Uweeeeek!”

I vomited again.

The maddened Hersella.

After suppressing it again and again, her true self that had finally awakened didn’t even feel human.

She was a rabid dog wielding tentacles of murder karma, devouring people.

I actually knew.

No, I should say I suspected.

That the original consciousness of this body, Hersella, might remain within me.

I had heard it whenever I was wounded and my mind weakened, or when fatigue made me dizzy.

Her voice calling to me from within.

And it wasn’t just her voice alone.

When did those sounds, initially just static-filled hallucinations, start to sound like human language?

It was probably around the time I understood the power of karma and could somewhat handle murder karma while using Frosting.

The more familiar I became with the power, the closer the voice got.

As if Hersella’s power was pulling its owner back.

…I wanted a cigarette.

So the fresh mint aroma could wash away the sticky smell of blood and entrails filling my head.

Once again, nausea rose up.

“Princess Aishan-Gioro! Are you alright?!”

Perhaps hearing my retching, Leopold burst through the infirmary door in a rush.

He too looked like he hadn’t properly rested, appearing as though he’d gone a week without sleep.

“Weeeek…”

“…You don’t look alright.”

Leopold glanced at the infirmary floor and stepped slightly aside.

The sour smell filled the entire room.