CH 194

Chapter 194 – Ringleader

Advancing to the middle of the rebel forces lined up on both sides of the street; I bring the Griffon to a halt. The Imperial Army soldiers guarding the main gate of the council chambers open a gap just wide enough for the hovercraft to pass through as it turns. They didn’t seem intimidated by the roar and storm of the huge vehicle, which they had never seen before.

“Maybe Mir is right about this one.”

“Dead soldiers? Are you saying all these guys are prepared to die?”

Louis, behind the driver’s seat, let out a disgusted voice. The “Battlecry” that protects the lord in the car and the Cassmeer Guards, who are holding their weapons on the side deck, are both on high alert in case of an unexpected situation.

“Ah, Demon King. I’m sorry, but please wait a bit before you attack. First of all, I want to confirm the safety of the nine council members. It is possible that we were called here… to discuss the terms of surrender.”

Lord McKin asked in a voice that even he did not believe.

“If it’s only a possibility, then whatever it is.”

The problem is that there is no point in doing it on the part of the rebels. According to the laws of the Republic, foreign invasion is punishable by death, no questions asked. Both the invader and the instigator are to be beheaded in public. I haven’t heard the details, but considering the pre-modern judiciary, there is a possibility of involvement.

“Don’t get comfortable, McKin-dono. Those who have once turned their blades against us will never want peace. Even if they were to offer terms of surrender, they would be laughed at by the victors if they lost 70% of their army. They know that. They are almost certainly going to make their last stand.”

If you die, everyone will die, right? Well, I guess so. According to what I have heard, if the remnants of the Imperial Army’s general faction return to the Empire alive, their entire families will be slaughtered.

And more fundamentally, the agreement to cease fighting and surrender is made between the rulers. They are now nothing more than terrorists, and they have no authority to do so. It is not a world where extrajudicial measures are taken out of humanitarian considerations.

“The best they could do was to drop everything and run away. But… it’s too late now.”

Myrril laughed in a low voice.

“They are already between us.”

“Hold on, Guards!”

“”””Yes!””””

I turned my hovercraft just past the main gate and pointed the MAG general-purpose machine gun in the gun mount on the roof to the street. The huge propulsion rotors are spinning, so the rear is a blind spot. The soldiers in the street were distorted in their ranks as if they were trying to close a siege.

“Only those who want to die, step forward!”

The soldiers stopped and froze before the murderous gaze of Myrril and the muzzle of the MAG.

“Disembark.”

As I opened the hatch of the Griffon and disembarked, a man in a black cloak stood right next to me, staring at us with an expression of rage. He was wearing something that resembled a ceremonial uniform, unlike his subordinates, who were in what appeared to be combat uniforms, as if he were a field commander. There are no rank emblems or short, and the color and shape of the cloak are the same, so the soldiers and the commander are indistinguishable unless you get close to them. I don’t know if this was the original idea or if it was done to conceal the chain of command in preparation for the invasion.

“Welcome aboard, fellow remnants of the defeated.”

“…You bastard!”

I attach an extended magazine with 40 rounds to my light machine gun and pull the bolt for all to see. I don’t know how much he knows about our weapons, but the man’s expression is one of hatred, and he doesn’t move.

As the soldiers are about to approach, Myrril fires a warning shot from the gun turret at the foot of the soldiers.

“Aside from the Lord of the South, who went as an emissary of the permanent member of the Cassmeer Council, do you think that we will show mercy to the rebels? It would be easy to kill you all, but we are willing to listen to you for the time being. If you insult us, we will turn you into wreckage the next time.”

The field commander raises his hand, and the soldiers line up back on the street. They backed off for the time being, but they did not seem to have given up.

“…This will not end like this.”

As expected, the other man blurts out.

“You still don’t realize it; congratulations! You are already finished.”

Myrril jumped down from the gun position and approached the man, waving his hand in the air. Perhaps her movement seemed relaxed, but one of the soldiers rushed silently behind her.

With a soft movement, her hand poised the UZI, turned, and shot the soldier in the eyeball.

“Ask yourselves. How many of the imperial officers and generals who went to Casemaian have returned? How many weapons, arms, and supplies have been recovered? It is the same in the Hagwai. If you want to go after those fools, fine. You can come after us anytime you want. …Like this guy, eh?”

Myrril smiles faintly at the corpse. The field commander grits his teeth and endures the humiliation.

“I’m sorry to keep you waiting.”

The man who appeared earlier as a messenger, who looked like a civil official, came to us. He must not have been on the road, but I don’t know how he got here. We did not see any horses around us, and he did not seem to be out of breath. Maybe this guy has special abilities, too.

“South Lord McKin-sama and the Demon King Yoshua-sama. Brigadier General Tyer of the Imperial Guard is waiting inside to see you.”

We headed for the entrance to the council chambers with Lord McKin, who was accompanied by an escort. I’m in the lead with my RPK gear. In the front of the army is Myrril with her beloved UZI, accompanied by Moff, the snow wolf.

“Storage.”

I turn around and put away the Griffon in front of the council chambers. The rebel soldiers gasped as the hovercraft’s massive body, which had attracted so much attention, disappeared. I hope they understand what happens when that ability is directed at them.

“This way.”

The civilian officer led the way through the council chambers. Surprisingly, there was no sign of a struggle or any sign of life in the room. We were led up the stairs to what appeared to be a conference room at the back of the building.

“With all due respect, sir, could you please put your weapons away?”

“I have no obligation to care that much about you.”

“Mir.”

I made eye contact with her and asked her to give in, and she reluctantly handed me the UZI and M79. The swords and hand spears of the guards were also stowed away with the RPKs to make them appear unarmed.

The only ready-to-use weapons are the pistols in shoulder holsters. Myrril’s M1911 copy and my Browning Hi-Power. The handguns were supposedly never shown to the Imperial Guard, so they would not be able to see them over our winter coats. Nothing, in particular, was pointed out to them.

When I looked at him to see if he was satisfied with this, the civilian officer bowed his head auspiciously.

“I appreciate it.”

When you have the ability to store, armed or unarmed means nothing more than a rite of passage. With Myrril’s seven bullets, the seven bullets in the reserve magazine, and my thirteen bullets, up to twenty-seven people can be killed… or, in my case, at most, one person for every two bullets.

“Can you kill up to 20 people?”

As expected of Mir-san, she even reads my prowess, though.

Knocking on the heavy-looking door, the civil official who entered first beckoned us in.

A huge table, two meters wide and fifteen meters long, was set up. In front of it were nine elderly men who looked like council members or representatives of the Republic. Behind them, about 20 soldiers from the Imperial Army and the Northern Territories were waiting by the wall. And to make matters worse, all of them were armored.

Would a handgun be just barely enough? Well, if I kill half of them, I can at least buy time to bring out other weapons, I thought again.

“I apologize for the inconvenience to you both, distinguished gentlemen.”

A man seated in the back of the conference room spoke to us in a condescending tone. He was a middle-aged man of medium height and grayish-brown hair with no significant features other than cunning-looking eyes. Against the light streaming in through the window, he leaned back in his chair and made no move to stand up as if trying to show his superiority.

I could sense that Myrril was clearly annoyed, and the sense of impending crisis was already growing.

“I’m sorry, but I’m not prepared to welcome you…”

“No need for your nonsense.”

It was, surprisingly, Lord McKin who opened the conversation.

“There is no room for negotiation. I will not listen to your requirements. Our demands are unconditional surrender and the release of the Republic’s capital, Hagwai, and the council members. Any claim for reparations from the Empire will be made after your deaths.”

“And you expect us to comply?”

“What you will do is up to you. It is not our concern.”

The imperial soldiers groaned and were blown away as they tried to step toward us.

In an instant, four of them were slammed against the wall and remained motionless. Then, at last, they realized that Tig and Louis, who had been escorting Lord McKin, had wielded a formidable arm that had gone unnoticed. No warning, no mercy.

“The negotiations are already broken down.”

“I told you, we’re not even going to negotiate. Didn’t you hear him?”

It seems that he was just a muscle-brain and had no idea what he was doing. These types of people are better suited to be guards. The rebels lost the initiative.

“You are… Tyre or whatever you call yourself?”

Myrril-san spoke to the man by the window, who seemed to be the leader of the rebel group.

“Exactly. I am Brigadier General Kelbert Tyer, in charge of the Imperial Volunteer Army sent to support our brothers in the Republic.”

“I don’t believe the emperor has entrusted you with such a thing, but that’s alright. I have only… one more question to ask you.”

Suddenly, the air in the room became heavy and stagnant. The soldiers gasped at the overpowering atmosphere. The representatives of the Republic, who are only civilians, even though they are the rulers, are sweating greasy sweat and looking pale as if they are about to faint. Lord McKin and the guards also began to waver under the influence of the high spirits. Myrril-sanl, you’ve gone too far. They will die. Our ally will die.

“…Guahh!”

General Tyer was desperately trying to maintain his composure and fight back so as not to be engulfed by Myrril’s killing intent, but he didn’t seem to be succeeding very well. He stood up shakily and was about to order his men to do something, but they did not even look at Tyer.

All eyes were now fixed on the voice. The girl with a black shadow and a small hand on her chest said.

“Have you learned nothing from the death of your people?”

Myrril’s voice echoed in the quiet conference room. The voice was gentle and calm, filled with compassion, which in turn gripped the hearts of those listening with fear.

“What fate befell those fools who dared to draw their bows against the Demon King?”