When Jeter led the Chimera Knights to sow chaos throughout the palace on orders from the Cardinal Secretary of State, the Imperial City Guards received their own instructions from the Minister of Finance, Sora.
The pay the city guards received was meager at best, but what they got from the Chancellor far outweighed the queen's salary. The tax collector whom Sora had caught back when he wasn't yet a knight had been under the Chancellor's thumb. It was all part of buying off the troops.
But when the city guard commander read the letter, cold sweat beaded on his forehead. Although he didn't want to betray the Queen, the ledgers held by Finance Minister Sora recorded every time the City Guards had taken bribes from him—how many instances, how much gold. If the Chancellor fell, the commander would be dragged down with him.
"Hah—" Since it had come to this, better to see it through.
The city guard commander steeled himself, threw on his clothes, left the house, summoned his subordinates in the dead of night, and ordered a full citywide curfew—no one allowed to leave their homes. He had to wait until the palace business settled.
The city guards' movements roused the capital's residents. One by one, they peeked out their windows at the torch-bearing guards with longswords patrolling the streets. What was going on? Had Goliath attacked the capital?
Gramont was jolted awake in the middle of the night. He sent his butler downstairs to inquire and learned the city guards had imposed martial law across the entire city.
Gramont frowned. A full city lockdown? Without knowing why, neither a minister nor a marshal could authorize something like that. Unless... the city guards were acting on their own.
Gramont threw on his pajamas and headed for the door.
Whoosh—hundreds of city guards with torches and sabers surrounded and blocked the entrance.
"What is the meaning of this?! Out of my way!"
Gramont bellowed.
The city guard officer replied:
"I'm sorry, Marshal. Our commander says no one leaves their home tonight."
"Me too? I'm a minister! A marshal!!"
"The City Guard answers to Her Majesty the Queen. Even the marshal can't command us."
"You!!! This is unauthorized troop deployment. I demand to see Her Majesty and find out what's happening!"
"Marshal, please return inside. We can't let you through tonight."
Gramont stepped forward, but the junior officer blocked him with an outstretched hand.
"You think these hundreds of men can stop me?"
Gramont's anger flared. He raised his wand.
The city guards panicked.
Everyone knew Gramont was [Square-class]. Without a [Square-class] mage or specialist unit on their side, it would take thousands of soldiers to handle one.
The junior officer gave a bitter smile, unbuckled his saber, and tossed it to the ground.
"My lord is [Square-class], so we can't stop you, of course. But the state has its laws, and the military its rules. We've been ordered not to let you leave the mansion. Unless a new order comes, if you want out, you'll have to kill me first—then the three hundred brothers behind me."
At that, the soldiers behind the officer one by one unbuckled their blades, dropped them on the ground, and stared silently at Gramont.
Gramont's grip tightened on his wand, his mind torn.
"Hmph!! We'll see what Her Majesty intends to do."
Gramont lowered his wand, turned, and stalked back into the mansion.
The city guards collectively exhaled in relief, huddled close so all could hear, exchanged glances, and chuckled.
"What are you laughing at? Pick up your blades and stay vigilant."
"Yes, sir."
The junior officer glanced at the Gramont mansion, then out over the capital. He was puzzled too—what was Her Majesty planning? Or was it what the higher-ups intended? Never mind. He was just a small fry. As long as he did his duty, the big shots would handle the rest.
Meanwhile, at the residence of Niels, President of the Supreme Court.
City guards pounded urgently on the door. The butler who answered was furious.
"Do you know this is a minister's home?"
The lead man was the City Guard commander himself.
"We've been ordered to arrest Supreme Court President Niels. We have evidence of him communicating with foreign powers—treason. Let us in to take the traitor."
"Very well."
Hundreds of soldiers like hungry wolves stormed Niels' mansion and hauled him out of the master bedroom on the second floor, where he'd been sleeping soundly with his concubine in his arms.
"What are you doing! I'm a minister! Head of the Supreme Court—you can't arrest me without the queen's order!" Niels wailed like a ghost.
"I'm sorry, Lord Niels, but you're suspected of treason. Come with us."
"What!? Impossible—Henrietta is my niece! How could I rebel? This is a mistake—let me go! I want to see Henrietta, I want to see Her Majesty!" Niels thrashed wildly.
"Behave yourself." The commander drove a fist into his gut, leaving Niels gasping in pain.
"Take him away, keep him under strict guard, interrogate him through the night."
"Yes, sir."
The commander withdrew with his main force, leaving about fifty men to seal off Niels' mansion and bar anyone else from leaving.
Lord Samani... this time I've bet everything on you. You have to succeed.
The commander's heart raced. As someone under Samani's indirect control, he knew little of the full plan. He'd done his part; now all he could do was worry.
The Secretary of State, Foreign Minister Gruene, and Finance Minister Sora all departed their residences. The city guards who received orders naturally let them pass, though puzzled. Wasn't the whole city under curfew? Word was the queen had summoned certain ministers for some matter.
The three ministers arrived together outside the palace.
The palace was already in chaos. The clash between the Unicorn Knights and Chimera Knights had drawn in the palace's five hundred guards, leaving only a skeleton crew of ten at the gates.
"Let us in at once—Her Majesty summoned us urgently," the Secretary of State told the doorman.
"My lords, this..." The doorman looked distressed.
"We are three ministers—do you mean to leave us out here in the wind?"
"Watch out, or we'll have Her Majesty dismiss you from gate duty."
The other two ministers chimed in.
"It's not that I won't let you through—it's just that inside, right now... alas."
"We came to resolve whatever's happening inside. Step aside."
"Really? My lords, please, come in, come in." The guard moved aside with relief.
The three ministers and their six attendants entered the palace together.
The Secretary of State took the lead, striding swiftly toward Henrietta's bedroom.
Deeper in, the fighting intensified. Along the way, more than a dozen Unicorn and Chimera knights lay dead, along with over a hundred regular soldiers. In the hallway before the bedchamber doors, hundreds of soldiers were locked in stalemate with a single man.
Chimera Knight leader Jeter, a wind-fire [Triangle-class] mage.
Before he could reach the queen's bedroom alone after felling Rove, every first-level spell he unleashed could cut down three to five soldiers. Though the guards outside the bedroom trembled in fear, their loyalty to Henrietta drove them to fight to the death, charging at Jeter one after another.
Jeter was straining hard too. He'd burned through too much magic power battling Rove; now he could barely manage a few second-level spells and had to grind them down with first-level ones.
And this was when the ministers arrived with their entourage.
The six attendants were no pushovers—all elite mages handpicked by the ministers, every one a single-element [Triangle-class].
"Haxiu Wendy Wendy Lie." [Great Wind Blade]
"Yah Faile Faile Albrook." [Big Fireball]
"Haru erth erth xiu." [Rock Spear Burst]
...
Six struck at once, six second-level spells crashing into the guards. In an instant, more than half of the hundreds were killed or wounded. The survivors quailed and dared not rush forward again.
"Your Majesty, we have urgent business with the Queen!" the Secretary of State called out.
In the bedchamber, Henrietta gazed down coldly from the second-floor window.
After those six [Triangle-class] appeared, she knew the guards stood no chance. Mage power normally required Magic Knights to counter, letting guards overwhelm with numbers—but the two knight orders were slaughtering each other.
The palace defenses had crumbled because of that man.
Henrietta glared furiously at Jeter.
"Jeter, I thought I treated you well. Why betray me?"
Henrietta flung open the window and demanded angrily.
Jeter sneered and stepped behind the Secretary of State, saying nothing.
The Secretary of State faced the Queen.
"Your Majesty, please let us in. These soldiers are loyal to you—I don't want more sacrifices," he said coolly.
Henrietta shook with rage but held her tongue.
"Very well. You three ministers, come in."
The three exchanged glances.
Jeter spoke: "No, my lord. Aside from the three Magic Knight orders—since they're all women, we couldn't guard them closely—we've also trained a female musketeer unit."
The Secretary of State nodded.
"Your Majesty, what we must discuss is confidential. Dismiss your lackeys from the palace."
"Hmph. I'll rid the Queen of you traitors myself."
The first-floor bedchamber doors burst open. A dozen figures led by Aniyasi charged out, muskets blazing. "Bang bang bang bang"—gunshots rang out nonstop.
"Gelsomado Us Us Ci." [Earth Wall]
A two-meter-high, three-meter-long, half-meter-thick earth wall rose just in time to block the bullets.
The ministers ducked in panic.
The seven [Triangle-class], Jeter included, turned on the musketeers.
[Fireball] [Wind Blade] [Rock Spear] [Wind Hammer] [Rock Spear] [Water Bomb] [Fireball]
Seven first-level spells targeted seven foes. At under ten meters, no [Triangle-class] missed with precise control. One volley dropped six musketeers.
The fireball aimed at Aniyasi was doused by the water skin hidden under her cloak. She burst through the steam, skirted the earth wall, and lunged at the cowering minister with her blade.
"Not a chance." Jeter, the strongest despite his depleted magic, reacted first.
"Lille Wendy Young." [Wind Shield]
A dense, chest-sized air barrier perfectly deflected Aniyasi's sword thrust, sending it scraping against the earth wall. Jeter advanced, smashed her sword aside with a punch, and grappled her in a flurry of fists and kicks. Magic Knights trained in close combat beyond spells—the three captains were top-tier, and even Sora with his [Gandalfr] power had once traded blows mano-a-mano with William, Rove, and Jeter.
Of the remaining six [Triangle-class], one guarded the three ministers while the others kept slinging first-level spells to pick off the musketeers.
"Ah ah ah ah ah"
Muskets offered some ranged punch, but blocked by the earth wall, they paled against magician-controlled spells in accuracy and power—magic far outclassed bullets. The seventeen musketeers were swiftly butchered by the five [Triangle-class].
Aniyasi fought in agony, trading desperate blows. She hammered Jeter's wounded abdomen; he landed three or four on her face. Pain forced Jeter back—he wouldn't tangle with this madwoman.
The waiting [Triangle-class] struck at once.
"Haru Ursu." [Rock Spear]
A one-meter rock spear erupted beneath Aniyasi, skewering her right leg and nailing her to the ground.
"Ah———" Aniyasi screamed in torment.
Just as that earth [Triangle-class] moved to finish her—
"Enough!" Henrietta roared. Everyone looked to Queen Henrietta.
"You lot—just come in." Henrietta said wearily.
The Secretary of State smiled and entered Henrietta's bedchamber with his two companions and the seven [Triangle-class].
Outside, the palace soldiers and Aniyasi writhed in anguish. Their failure shamed their subordinates; their queen's humiliation cut deeper than death.
..
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