Adam had a chaotic dream.
In it, he relived events from the Fourth Epoch, but unlike his actual experiences, an uninvited guest appeared, altering the course of events dramatically. For instance, in one scene involving a feast, Medici didn't fall, and Adam found himself strung up on a lamppost.
"What did he do this time?" Adam muttered, rubbing his aching temples. He knew the dream wasn't random... likely another of Alaric's antics.
Adam felt a mix of exasperation and familiarity. Since Alaric's arrival in this world, he'd caused endless upheaval. The day Alaric didn't stir trouble would be the real surprise.
A bad premonition nagged at Adam, urging him to hide somewhere obscure, but he resisted and instead looked toward a nearby platform.
A guillotine stood ready, with former Loen King George III kneeling before it. He clearly wanted to struggle, but seals bound him, leaving him as helpless as a puppet.
Beside him, someone read out his crimes in plain language, ensuring even illiterate citizens could understand George III's misdeeds.
These charges weren't fabricated... George III, the Augustus family's chosen Black Emperor, was no saint. His crimes were so numerous that ten executions wouldn't suffice.
Citizens who once held hope or nostalgia for their king turned furious upon hearing his deeds, clamoring for his head.
"Kill him!"
"Traitor! Tyrant! Who knew he was like this?"
"Off with his head!"
Amid the crowd's outraged cries, George III was led to the guillotine. With the blade's fall, the Augustus family's thousand-year rule over Loen ended.
"Enjoying the show?" a familiar voice asked, a hand resting on Adam's shoulder.
Adam, unsurprised, glanced at Alaric. "Very entertaining. What's your plan for the remaining Augustus family?"
"I thought you'd know," Alaric said, smiling. "Those who deserve judgment will face it; those who don't will be released. The Augustus family is no different from other nobles to me... I won't spare them specially, nor will I wipe them out."
Alaric wasn't afraid of an Augustus restoration. Keeping them under watch was smarter than hunting them down, only for opportunists to later exploit their name. With the legitimate Augustus line under his control, pretenders would lack legitimacy.
Incidentally, a certain prince who loved a Demoness had been arrested alongside her. The prince, having committed no major crimes, was undergoing reeducation and would likely be released soon. The Demoness, however, was atoning by hunting her sect's members alongside William I.
Whether this couple would end up together was uncertain. Without the original story's tragic separation, the prince might still love Trissy, but whether she'd recognize her feelings for him was unclear.
"Another ship I rooted for has sunk…" Alaric shook his head, lamenting his ill-fated shipping endeavors.
Adam wasn't surprised by this outcome. He chatted with Alaric about the new nation's formation... whether it would be an empire or a republic, and whether Loen would be renamed.
Alaric answered readily. He had no interest in being emperor, so the new Loen would be a republic, with him as the figurehead. Sasrir would handle most governance as second-in-command, while Medici would serve as the republic's general.
Loen would be renamed the Republic of Sotha, a nod to commemoration.
The establishment of governmental systems and talent selection was already underway. Maintaining a nation required robust systems and capable people.
"Don't ask me for specifics... Sasrir and the others are handling that, including rolling out the new order. I'm staying out of it," Alaric said, shrugging and opting out.
Adam nodded, unsurprised, then glanced at the lounging Medici nearby. Changing the subject, he asked, "So, are you here to beat me up?"
"Yup!" Alaric nodded bluntly, smiling at Adam. "You ready for a thrashing?"
"Of course…" Adam returned a smile. "Not."
His figure vanished... he'd left long ago, leaving only an illusion.
Unfazed, Alaric turned to Medici. "The hunt's on!"
Medici, equally unsurprised by Adam's disappearance, smirked. "Driving the prey into a trap is a key part of hunting."
…
Unsurprisingly, the hunt for Adam, with Alaric and Medici making no effort to hide their intentions, drew a crowd.
Spectators included a curious Amon, who showed up for no clear reason; Bethel, who loved a good spectacle; Sasrir, dragged from overtime work; Klein's trio, tagging along with Sasrir; and…
"I get why they're here, but where did you three come from?" Alaric asked, eyeing three avatars: the Evernight Goddess, shrouded in a hooded veil; the God of Steam and Machinery, gleaming with mechanical sheen; and a volatile-looking avatar of the Lord of Storms, whom Alaric had never met but instantly recognized.
"You're making such a ruckus in the Spirit World, it's hard not to notice," The Evernight Goddess's avatar said, her voice gentle with a smile.
She gazed at the distance, where Medici and Adam clashed fiercely, with Amon occasionally interfering... not favoring either side, but randomly disrupting one or the other, stealing abilities or lending aid, thriving on chaos.
***
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