Flames surrounded the entire place.
Several screams erupted, and I had no choice but to fix the falling helmet whilst biting my lips tightly.
It was uncomfortable because my view kept getting blocked.
Not only did the breathing sounds get worse, but swearing began to pop out of my mouth.
“Sh*t. Sh*t…”
“Fire! Fire! They are not imperialists, but rebels possessed by a witch! Don’t stop with the arrows! Never let them enter the Imperial Palace! Don’t put compassion in your hands! Don’t let them come here!”
‘Traitor. They are traitors.’
Though I knew I had to do what I had to do, the bow could not be pulled off that easily.
Perhaps it was not just me who felt this way.
The colleague next to me had also been unable to pull the arrow off of him.
All I can do was to pray not to hit anyone and shoot these to the sky.
‘Sh*t! Damn! Fuck!’
“Don’t look at the sky! It is the whisper of the devil. The blessing of Goddess Benigore is a false story! That’s not the Goddess’ mirror! All that Oscar said is a lie! Don’t be fooled by their words. Do not believe anything! Only His Majesty is right! Don’t panic! Do not panic!”
He said this without hesitation, but Chief Baek also had traces of anxiety on his face.
When I saw him open his mouth to tell us not to panic, I thought it might be a message to himself. He probably felt that something was weird, too.
‘Devil’s whispers, my ass!’
Indeed, if that was the devil’s whisper, as the Imperial Palace said, by now, the Heresy Inquisitors from the Pope’s side should have come out to stop them.
Even some priests had also begun to side with the imperial people.
No matter how I thought about this, it didn’t make sense that the foreign priests and the actual priests who had prayed were also present.
There was no official announcement, but they must have determined that they were not wrong.
If the Pope and other cardinals had also checked the Goddess’s mirror, I guess they would know who was good and who was evil.
‘That’s not a lie.’
In fact, I was born and raised in a province ruled by Count Bush, and I knew better than anyone else as to what had been going on over there.
The hungry imperial people and the nobles were busy filling their stomachs.
I had to worry that today would pass with no trouble, and I had to pray to Goddess Benigore every night that no other incident would happen after this.
Why was our life so miserable?
If Goddess Benigore did exist, I had to wonder why she did not care for us every time.
‘They are correct.’
It was not that Goddess had a problem. The problem was the nobles and royal families who had rebelled against the Goddess.
‘Everyone under the Goddess is equal.’
There was no way that the Goddess Benigore distinguished the precious from the unworthy from the beginning.
The Goddess’ mirror was the Bible and weapon of enlightenment that she had chosen to give to the people.
There were aristocrats who did not see people as humans, but as dogs, and only saw them as targets to be exploited.
Meanwhile, an imperial family was busy living a luxurious life with the imperial people’s taxes.
‘If you don’t have bread, you can eat cake? What… bullsh*t is that?’
‘What bullsh*t she is talking about?!’
“How can she say something like that…?”
In cities in the north or west’s outskirts, thousands and tens of thousands of people couldn’t even eat grass porridge, let alone bread.
Before coming to the capital, I only thought that cakes were things from fairy tales.
It was a kind of luxury that I needed to be prepared to buy with the salary I was currently receiving.
They always said that they always thought of the people as well as the imperial people, but the royal family didn’t even care as to what kind of life they lived.
It was not even strange if one were to see what the nobles, the royal families, and those who could be called the vested interests of this Empire really did.
The Second Princess Charlotte, famous for being incorruptible and not extravagant, also used an amount unimaginable by common people’s standards for dignity maintenance.
Probably, tens of thousands of imperialists could live without hunger if the royal family’s vaults were released.
“You have to stand up! Let’s stand up together! This Empire is not of the royal family. It belongs to Goddess Benigore and all imperial people!”
“Let’s follow Oscar!”
“For the sacred democracy!”
The appearance of Oscar, who had begun to lead the people with a flag, was different from what I had always heard.
She looked as intense as if she was the Goddess of Liberty.
She was a woman with golden hair, receiving light from the priests’ blessings and divine powers. Her appearance was even sublime.
As I looked above the sky without noticing, I began to see new people within the Goddess’s mirror.
I could see a still young girl, a girl who can’t even hold a big flag properly.
If I had married a little early and had children, I’d probably have a daughter about her age.
When I raised my head again with my mind confused, I saw an imperial soldier wearing the same armor as mine.
“N-No!”
‘Are they shooting even a small child…?!’
I was also an imperial soldier.
But what was the reason to pull a demonstration with such a girl? My hands had begun to tremble.
I didn’t know if this was unfortunate or fortunate, but it was seen that the girl was saved because of a man who had chosen to dive in front of her.
However, the man who was hit by the arrow stumbled and began to fall to the ground.
As I watched him slowly closing his eyes, I felt a lump in my throat.
-With a burning thirst. With burning thirst… sacred democracy… hurray.
What was right, and what was wrong?
‘Damn.’
What was I doing here now?
All these people were fighting.
Why couldn’t I lift my sword together and shoot arrows at them? Why should we protect those who harassed and oppressed us?
I couldn’t understand anything anymore at this point.
“Don’t think about anything else.”
“Sir.”
“Mike, I’m saying this for your own good. Don’t think about anything else. We just weren’t lucky. We just happened to stand on the other side of them. If we turn our backs like this now, we will be killed by a knight’s sword, not the imperial people. It’s not just you. There might be at least a few thousand people who want to get out of this position right now.”
“Then why…?”
“That’s life for guys like us, Mike. As the wind blows and the waves strike, being dragged back and forth… that’s our life. I am not pulling the bow because I want to.”
“The Goddess will punish us, sir. I won’t be at peace, even if I die.”
“No. The Goddess will also forgive us. Yes… She will definitely forgive. She will pat our back, saying it was unavoidable.”
“But…”
“… …”
���… …”
Craaackkk!
Baaaaannngg!
“Don’t stop! Don’t stop your movements!”
“You are also imperial people! Let’s stand up and fight together! Your swords shouldn’t go to the same imperial people! It’s the imperial soldiers and knights. Let’s stand up together. Let’s fight together!”
“Ahhhhhh! Get your defense magic ready!”
“Don’t listen to your enemies! Right now, you should only think about protecting His Majesty. His Majesty!”
“Where is your Emperor?! What are you fighting for?! Empire soldiers!”
“It’s a witch! Oscar is a witch! Cover your ears rather! Cover your ears! Soldiers of the Empire! If you haven’t forgotten that you have pledged allegiance to become His Majesty’s sword, throw arrows! Save those who are possessed by the devil!”
“Priests! Call the priest!”
“We are not lifting our swords towards you! Lower your weapon! Lower your weapon and fight with the will of the Goddess in your heart!”
“Protect His Majesty!”
“I will protect you! I will be with you!”
in, all mixed up.
In the meantime, explosions and screaming sounds continued to be heard.
Chief Baek literally wanted to cover his ears.
‘Right. It can’t be helped.’
This was inevitable.
I had sworn to the Goddess to fight for His Majesty.
I couldn’t possibly abandon that oath.
Even if I were to die here as the sir said, the Goddess would understand. She would pat my back, saying it was inevitable.
My mouth was distorted, and my hands had begun to shake.
It was then that an unexpected voice was heard.
“The Emperor is leaving the imperial city!”
‘Huh?’
“The Emperor and Princess Charlia! They are exiting the Imperial Palace!”
‘W… What is that…?’
When I raised my head again, I saw them reflected in the mirror of the Goddess.
Surrounded by knights, the appearance of quickly exiting the Imperial Palace’s back door is a spectacle.
It was not just them.
The same went for some of the nobles who stayed in the Imperial Palace.
They were hiding in the safest place and were leaving when the fight was about to take place.
“These bad motherfuckers! You dirty bastards! How can you say that you still rule the Empire?!”
That was the one to which I pledged my allegiance—the one who ruled as the absolute of this great Empire.
No wonder sparks had begun to burn in my eyes.
At that point, I aimed the arrow without knowing it and shot it at the Emperor reflected in the mirror of the Goddess.
Chuck.
With that sound, something hit by an arrow fell to the floor.
“Uh…”
“What’s… that…?”
I could see a large shadow gradually cast over the capital.
The Goddess mirror, which I could see just before, was not even visible, hidden by something huge.
As if it was at night, the appearance of a creature that covered the sun for a while is the best part.
It was hard to understand how someone with such a huge body could float in the sky.
“Ohhh… Ohh…”
There was no way I wouldn’t notice what that was. This was something I’d heard only by stories.
“Really… It really existed.”
Other soldiers also began to mutter, gazing at the sky blankly.
Craaaaackk! Cruuuusshhh!!
After passing by the soldiers, a huge claw lodged itself into the Imperial Palace.
Although the imperial castle debris fell to the floor, the huge creature began to occupy the top of the imperial castle as if it were its own nest.
Grrroooaarrrr!
It made a loud sound that made the skin vibrate. The surroundings were immediately silenced.
‘Dragon.’
It was obvious as to why such a creature was here. It was because of the foreigner chosen by a dragon—one of the Eight Seats of the Empire, as well as the Honorary Bishop of the Holy Empire.
I could see a little human muttering, all while holding the horns on the head of the dragon.
“Where are you going in such a hurry, Your Majesty?”