New Merchant Noble is out (6/6 chapters for today)

 

 

Opening the Gates

(Thank you for reading at bayabuscotranslation.com)

(POV switch – Lily)

“Push forward! Kill Casablanca!” (Randal)

Although not even a full week had passed since Casablanca’s uprising, the subjugation force had already arrived at the eastern gate of the royal capital. Randal, who was leading the subjugation force, was attempting a breakthrough by brute force, rallying his soldiers as arrows poured down like rain.

“So, the enemy is Randall. He hates Casablanca-sama. He must be desperate to earn merit.” (Lily)

Lily had turned pale at how quickly the subjugation force arrived, but after confirming the enemy’s state from the eastern gate’s wall herself, she felt a bit relieved. From what she could see from above, the enemy was also unprepared. There were many soldiers without shields, and they were dropping one after another under the countless arrows coming down from the walls.

“All right! Hold your ground just like this!” (Lily)

The royal capital was the lifeline of the kingdom. For that reason, its walls were the thickest and highest in the kingdom. Even Randal could not break through them so easily.

“Lily-sama!” (Messenger)

Just as she had left the eastern gate in the hands of the soldiers and was about to return to the royal palace, a messenger came running again.

“The western gate is on the verge of falling!” (Messenger)

Lily could not understand what the messenger was saying. After a brief pause, her heart started pounding wildly again.

The western gate is on the verge of falling?

“That can’t be… These are the royal capital’s walls! There’s no way they could be broken through that easily…” (Lily)

Trembling all over, she jumped onto her horse and shouted at the citizens on the road as she rushed toward the western gate.

“This is…” (Lily)

There was no way the walls of the royal capital would be breached. Her thinking was not wrong. However, in another sense, it was also not right. The attack on the western gate was not coming from outside. It was coming from within.

“Open this gate!” (Citizen)

“Let us out of here!!” (Citizen)

Hundreds of residents were swarming the western gate. If the guards attacked the residents, they would instantly turn into a mob. The guards tried to push them back without using violence, but they were outnumbered. The western gate was about to be opened.

Lily was blocked by the crowd, and she could not reach the gate. With no other choice, she shouted with all her strength, loud enough to drown out the noise of the crowd.

“What do you think you’re doing! Casablanca-sama gave an order not to leave your homes!!” (Lily)

The crowd fell silent for a moment and turned around with startled faces. But when they realized the voice belonged to Lily, a member of the royal guard, their agitation only grew stronger.

“I heard it! Casablanca plans to use us residents as human shields!” (Man in crowd)

“If we stay in the capital, we’ll get caught in the fighting and be killed.” (Woman in crowd)

Human shields? She must mean hostages. That Arc… Most likely, they used the Sheeb Order that had infiltrated the capital to spread false rumors.

“Human shields!? That’s a lie. There’s no proof, it’s baseless speculation.” (Lily)

Lily strongly denied it in an effort to clear up the crowd’s misunderstanding. However, their anger did not subside.

“We can’t trust her anymore. How many wars does that woman need to start before she’s satisfied?” (Angry citizen)

“She’s a foolish ruler clinging to power!” (Citizen)

They had now begun outright criticizing Casablanca. Criticism of royalty by the common people was taboo. Even in the Laplace Kingdom, such words could bring serious punishment not only to the person but also to their relatives.

“You bastards! That’s lèse-majesté!! Who said that just now? I’ll cut you down myself!!” (Lily)

Lily’s face contorted in rage at the criticism of Casablanca. She drew her sword and shouted from horseback to threaten them, but the crowd showed no signs of backing down.

“We don’t care who rules the kingdom. We’re just tired.” (Citizen)

“We’re done with war.” (Citizen)

For them, power struggles were none of their business. They were simply standing up against the loss of their lives, safety, and peace. Moved by the sincere voices of the citizens, even the guards at the gate gradually began to side with them. The soldiers had only been drafted and were ordinary people. Their commoner instincts likely told them the crowd was more reasonable than Lily.

“That’s right! Let’s end this war.” (Soldier)

“Casablanca allied with a foreign power and attacked our own general from behind. We can’t trust her.” (Soldier)

And at last, even the guards who were supposed to protect Casablanca sided with the people. They joined hands and began removing the heavy barricades stacked at the western gate. It was only a matter of time before the gate opened.

“It can’t be helped. Inform all royal capital guards. Abandon the gates and regroup at the royal palace.” (Lily)

Lily could no longer handle the situation by herself. She made the decision to abandon the urban areas, which made up most of the royal capital. Then, she ordered the few remaining loyal soldiers to retreat to the royal palace and designated it as their final line of defense.

 

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