episode_0263

Soldiers with spears surround me. All are tense. I can tell. Some have hardened faces, others wear helmets, concealing their expressions. But their spear points tremble subtly.

“Surrender quietly, Your Highness. Then you won’t suffer.”

“It seems you still don’t understand the situation.”

“The one who doesn’t understand is you. Did you think that just because you’re royalty, we can’t touch you?”

Let’s suppose, just suppose, that I fall into their hands. I don’t know how far they’d go, but Verga’s Marquis probably trusts the First Prince. My brother, the First Prince, is the Marquis’s real backer, and also my political enemy.

There’s no familial affection between brothers. Considering what I’ve done, the First Prince would be delighted to be rid of an enemy. The others would feel the same. So, if the First Prince really acts, conventional wisdom might not apply.

“You’re relying on the authority of the royal family, it seems. But it’s simple enough to rewrite the scenario. You’re a criminal who, intoxicated by power, recklessly attacked the Verga Marquisate. You threatened civilians and went on a rampage, leaving us no choice but to subdue you.”

“Do you think I’ll just stand idly by? There’s plenty of evidence to the contrary.”

“We’ll just fabricate everything. That’s always been our method.”

It doesn’t sound like a lie. In reality, countless nobles in the underworld have eliminated their enemies this way. They fabricate evidence, manipulate the situation, and eliminate a person in an instant.

Thinking back, the First Prince seemed to be involved in most of these processes. When the victorious blood-stained winner provides a plausible scenario, even if it’s a bit shady, they accept it. It’s a kind of transaction. The prince naturally gains power and influence, and the noble receives an acquittal in court.

“I hear she’s no ordinary woman.”

“My looks aren’t ordinary. I’m not just a little pretty, am I?”

“…Are you planning to use seduction? It’s useless. My soldiers are all elite. Filled with outstanding warriors from the swordsmanship tournament. They won’t be careless.”

“Wow, scary.”

Clang- Clang-

One step, two steps. The soldiers slowly approach me. The sharp spear points draw nearer. I remain in a slouched stance, clenching my fists.

“What’s going to happen to me now?”

“First, I’ll stab you just enough to leave you a bloody mess. Then, after healing you with magic, I’ll put a slave collar on you. It’s an artifact that allows for absolute no resistance. I’ll feed you various drugs to shatter your mind. I can already picture you whimpering on my bed.”

“For an old geezer, you seem pretty interested in my body.”

“Still haven’t come to your senses? After I’ve had my fill, you’ll be facing these soldiers. I’ll tie you up in a hut and gang-rape you day and night. After completely breaking your spirit, you’ll become a criminal and a sex toy for the prisoners.”

He rambles on, seeming quite familiar with this sort of thing.

At the same time, I felt a peculiar change. The soldiers’ tension began to ease somewhat. Their morale seems to be rising. Predictably, it’s not just the Marquis who’s familiar with this. Turning political enemies into slaves or criminals has happened often, and the soldiers find the process quite satisfying.

Their gazes shifted slightly.

“Your gaze is dirty. Disgusting… but also, kind of exciting. You know? I’m a virgin.”

“…”

“Even if that old geezer Marquis uses his cock a few times, it won’t loosen me up. My body’s pretty well-trained, so even if I’m ravaged, it won’t break down easily.”

Clang-

The soldier at the front grips his spear shaft tightly. The soldier next to him licks his lips. Overall, their spirit has definitely risen. People work more efficiently when the reward is clear. Wouldn’t they be energized by the opportunity to subdue and violate the pretty woman in front of them?

Of course, my mood soured considerably, so I decided to stop here.

“Let’s stop playing around. It’s getting dark.”

I drew back my hind leg, lowering my body. Combat stance. I immediately pushed off the ground and dashed forward. I didn’t see any soldiers visually tracking my movements. It felt like only I was moving in slow motion.

I approached the soldier in the vanguard, the one lusting after my body. He’s sufficient as a target for venting my anger. I kicked him between his legs, sending him flying into the air.

Thwack-!

The soldier spun several times in the air before crashing to the ground. The sound of breaking bones echoed starkly. He landed headfirst, his neck twisting unnaturally. Definitely dead.

“…!!”

The soldiers’ eyes widen. I don’t give them a chance, landing punches on their faces. One punch per guy. One-shot, one-kill. The soldiers fall dead one after another.

Clang- Crunch- Smash-!

The sounds of shattering jawbones and skulls filled the surroundings. The soldiers started to regroup and guard against me, but it was too late. Before they realize they’re the next target, their lives end.

In an instant, their formation collapsed.

“Wh-what are you doing?! Can’t you subdue this one woman?! Attack all at once—!!”

The thoroughly flustered Verga Marquis roared. His voice served as a signal, and the soldiers rushed at me. They knew something was amiss, yet they had to attack. After all, they were soldiers ordered to follow command.

Death was the minimum mercy I would grant.

“Aaahhhh—!!”

Screaming a war cry, more than a dozen soldiers charged at once. With spears clashing, swinging bare fists or feet is difficult. I gathered strength in my legs, powerfully thrusting against the ground.

Floral Fighting Technique, Advancement Angle.

Rumble—!

The ground trembled, throwing the soldiers off balance, making them stagger. The moment their charge stopped, I darted through the gaps between the spear points, pummeling them once more. I aimed my punches at the softer areas – the gaps in their armor or their faces.

That’s when it happened.

I sensed three powerful auras. Knights who had been watching the situation from behind. Their armor covered them from head to toe. Moreover, their sword strikes possessed considerable force.

I stopped enjoying myself unarmed. I immediately gathered ether, drawing a sword from my dantian.

“Hup-”

[Shadowless Sword – Draw].

The pure white sword in my hand traced a crescent moon shape, severing the sky. The waists of the approaching knights split apart. Their upper and lower bodies separated, rolling across the garden’s earthen floor.

Thud-

After a battle lasting a little over a minute, all the soldiers lay fallen. The garden, beautiful and peaceful moments ago, was now filled with blood and corpses. The situation changed too rapidly; there wasn’t even time for any cries to escape.

I strode across the silent field of corpses, approaching the Verga Marquis.

“Yo-you…!!”

“Not anymore… no, his mind is completely gone now.”

His face was flushed crimson; the veins stood out prominently. But his rage was short-lived. Before me, wielding the Shadowless Sword, he knelt and bowed his head.

“Please… spare me just once…”

“Huh? I never intended to kill you in the first place.”

I immediately swung the sword, severing the Verga Marquis’s limbs. A slicing sound followed as his body fell limply. I grabbed his hair, lifted him, and stanched the severed ends.

“Gaaahh…”

“This is just the beginning.”

Hot tears streamed down his flabby skin. It was too gruesome, so I roughly tossed him aside and called for the knights.

… … …

“First, I’ll stab you just enough to leave you a bloody mess. Then, after healing you with magic, I’ll put a slave collar on you—”

Projecting my memories into a visual wasn’t difficult. It just involved separating a fragment of my soul and shaping it. The footage, unfolding vividly like a movie, showcased the Verga Marquis’s atrocities to the world.

“He deserves death!!”

“What a beast!!”

“He dared to insult royalty?! Even exterminating his entire family line wouldn’t be enough…!!”

I also revealed the events that took place in the Verga Marquisate in detail. As if tasked with dividing the work, most of it turned out to be human trafficking. They kidnapped their targets, turned them into slaves, and then fabricated evidence to justify the entire process.

This incident exposed countless suspects – the mercenaries who carried out the kidnappings, the magician group that created and supplied the enslavement artifacts, and the merchants who provided the pleasure drugs. They were all the Marquis’s underlings.

With the complete annihilation of a large noble faction, a different wind began to blow through the kingdom. It was perhaps a natural situation. A nation’s royalty had nearly vanished without a trace. The fact that if the scheme succeeded, no evidence would have remained was even more terrifying.

The misdeeds of the nobles, something many had subtly suspected, surfaced. Commoners spent the day in heightened tension. Merchants and adventurers were the same. Most nobles watched their surroundings carefully.

“What about that side?”

“…The Verga Marquis’s defeat significantly weakened their power. I don’t think anyone will attempt to harm Your Highness again.”

“No, that doesn’t matter. Just kill them all. Make sure none escape. Can you do that?”

“Yes, I can manage that much. I absolutely… absolutely won’t disappoint you.”

Marquis Velasquez reported to me, cringing. The underworld nobles I had seen that day, and the public opinion of the First Prince’s faction, could be considered to have plummeted. They’re supposedly constantly in conflict between surrendering and fleeing.

All that remains is to eliminate the remaining dregs.