By Zephyria The very center of the Laina Rogia Empire, where the Imperial Palace is located. Sanctus Linar. Also called Saint Laina, it is commonly named ‘Imperial Capital’ because it is the road to the Imperial Palace.
The flags of Laina Rogia fluttered above the domed roofs of the densely packed, towering, magnificent, and splendid buildings. Beyond the majestic and enormous gate decorated with tall, colorful buildings and delicate sculptures that seemed to breathe, the trees and flowers planted throughout the streets created a harmony.
Amidst the beautiful scenery, luxurious carriages bustled about, and high-ranking officials from various institutions in full uniform mingled with nobles dressed to the nines.
Unlike the frost territory, the Imperial Capital was a product of sacred and dazzling civilization, and the center of Laina Rogia’s politics, culture, and economy, with a large concentration of central government agencies under the Imperial Family.
It had a long history, was most sensitive to change, and had a concentrated population, so even the smallest news spread quickly.
And the most notable news in this Imperial Capital right now was that Leonardo Blaine had finally been arrested by Hugo Agrizendro.
“Big news, big news! Everyone, read the newspaper!”
The bustling and lively Imperial Capital was even more noisy that day. People were talking with newspapers in their hands, and newspaper delivery boys were running around busier than ever.
“That guy was finally caught?”
“His Excellency Agrizendro caught him himself.”
“As expected! No matter how much of a Leonardo Blaine he is, he can’t stand before him.”
In the vast residential area of the Imperial Capital, made up of densely packed houses with red roofs and yellow bricks and various colored commercial buildings, the story of the two was more of a topic than the fresh food that had just come into the vibrant morning market.
A fruit seller said he would give a special discount because he had heard the good news and advertised it extensively, and a tailor ran out of the store, saying he had to read the newspaper. Even the children who were running around in the alleys without knowing anything pricked up their ears and concentrated when they heard the names of the two.
A little away from the residential area, in the city center lined with towering castles and magnificent buildings, middle-aged men in luxurious fabrics were waiting for the streetcar, reading the newspaper and saying a word.
“So, does this mean the Imperial Army got a hit?”
“Well, wouldn’t you say so? They even exiled him and then hid him so that the Council wouldn’t do them any good.”
“Hey, let’s only talk about that when we’re alone.”
When Imperial Guards on horseback appeared right in front of them, the men cleared their throats and held back their words. The guards in red tops and gold braid insignia stared at them for a moment before riding their horses elsewhere.
As the men breathed a sigh of relief, the streetcar they had been waiting for finally arrived in front of them. The streetcar, which ran on magic, was a popular means of transportation in the Imperial Capital.
The streetcar was already packed with people, but the men grabbed their hats and squeezed inside, looking disgusted.
“This is what it’s like every time I go to work.”
“Why don’t you bring your carriage next time? And give me a ride too.”
“Easy for you to say. These days, even Viscounts get a bad look if they bring a carriage to the Imperial Capital.”
As the men entered the streetcar and took their seats, the streetcar, which had difficulty closing the door, departed immediately without waiting for anyone else. Another gentleman who had missed the timing rushed to the stop, but stopped in dismay, watching the streetcar leave.
Across from where he was standing, at a bakery with a wide spread of tables, women in elegant two-piece dresses and soldiers in black uniforms were having breakfast. The subtle scent of butter filled the street, and passersby turned to look at it.
At that time, as Council members in white uniforms passed by them sitting at the table, the two black and white groups subtly made eye contact and engaged in a war of nerves. A soldier in a black uniform flared up and half stood up, but was made to sit back down by the woman with him.
On the open roadside a little away from the city, people were also stopping and unfolding newspapers stuck in front of the store. The store owner brought heavy bundles of newspapers inside and said to the people outside.
“Hey, if you’ve seen it, put them back properly!”
“Oh my god, is this real?”
Whether the store owner was angry or not, people didn’t pay much attention and focused only on the contents of the newspaper. The basket on the shelf where they put money in exchange for seeing the newspaper in front of the store was already so full that it was overflowing.
The store owner, who had been angry, looked at it with satisfaction, took it inside, emptied the basket, and put it back up. The empty basket was quickly filled with money again.
A woman with orange hair, wearing a wide-brimmed hat and a plain, old dress that came down to her calves, was walking with paper bags full of herbs when she stopped in front of the store. She stared intently at the newspaper people were reading, and then unfolded one of the crumpled newspapers that was stuck in any old way.
As her gaze slowly scanned the black letters, the hand holding the newspaper gradually tightened, and soon she clenched the paper tightly and began to tremble.
「The Empire’s Sword Cuts Off the Empire’s Rotten Silver Arm」
People cheered at the sensational phrase printed in large letters on the front page of the newspaper, but she was very uncomfortable with this situation. People were telling the news here and there as if it were a celebration, telling each other to look at this.
Reading the article with a pale face among them, she threw the newspaper on the ground and kicked over the newspaper rack in front of the store with a bang. Then, when attention was focused on her, she hurriedly ran away, and the store owner, startled, ran out and began to pick up the spilled newspapers.
People who saw the scattered newspapers and the back of the woman running away, understood the situation, helped the store owner, and frowned.
“Hey, what’s wrong with that guy!?”
“Calm down, weird guys always ruin these good days.”
“Tsk tsk, they’re like social misfits anyway.”
The store owner clicked his tongue and put the newspaper back in the newspaper rack he had set up again. The newspaper that had been thrown on the ground was crumpled and tattered from being held so tightly. Thinking that he couldn’t put it back, the store owner took it inside, thinking that he would use it as waste paper.
On the back of the newspaper in his hand was an article harshly criticizing Leonardo Blaine’s past misdeeds.
* * *
Hugo looked at the huge iron cage with iron wheels being pulled by several horses.
The iron cage was wrapped in black blankets and sealed with all sorts of magic stone nets and sealing stones. The surrounding area was guarded by the best battalion commanders of the Council’s Northern Branch, and Hugo followed slowly behind them on horseback, keeping pace with the formation.
To get from the frost territory to the Imperial Capital, there was no way to go at once, and they had to pass through a total of three portals.
If they used teleportation to cross the territory at once and passed through the portal at the gate, they would have arrived at the Imperial Capital in just a few minutes, but now they had to move this huge iron cage covered with magic stones and sealing stones together. Therefore, when moving from one gate to another within the territory, they had to use physical methods rather than teleportation.
Because of this, the road back to the Imperial Capital took much longer and was more difficult than the road to the frost territory. However, with the help of the Northern Branch members, they were able to pass through the difficult road quickly, and so they finally arrived in front of the last gate to the Imperial Capital.
When the huge iron cage arrived at the gate, the battalion commanders of the Northern Branch who had come with them got off their horses and greeted Hugo with respect. Hugo also got off his horse.
“Our escort ends here. When you cross the gate, the Central Branch will already be waiting.”
“Thank you for your hard work escorting me here.”
“We were just fulfilling the Council’s mission. The work… Supreme Commander did it all, didn’t he?”
The 2nd Battalion Commander of the Northern Branch looked around the iron cage once and said. It was calm now, but he didn’t know how many people had struggled until the inside of that iron cage became quiet. If it hadn’t been for the Supreme Commander, it would have been almost impossible to put him in there and lock him up.
Hugo also followed the 2nd Battalion Commander’s gaze, looked around the iron cage once, and shook his head.
“It’s thanks to everyone’s efforts. It would have been impossible if I were alone.”
“You flatter us.”
3rd Battalion Commander Moria Halifega replied to his words. Her gaze lingered on the small scar under the Supreme Commander’s left eye.
When they were dispatched from the Northern Branch headquarters to escort Leonardo Blaine, the other members couldn’t even touch him because he was thrashing around even when he was tied up in the net.
In the end, the battalion commanders and Hugo decided to restrain him in the iron cage, but Leonardo launched a surprise attack in a moment of carelessness. The scar on his eye was caused when Hugo tried to subdue him and was scratched by his hand.
The external wound was not very deep, but it was in a position where he could have been blinded if it had grazed just a little higher.
Originally, wounds on the skin could be healed to some extent with Recovery magic, but the scar left by him left a subtle mark even after using Recovery.
Of course, the mark would disappear naturally over time, but the incident of Leonardo Blaine scratching Agrizendro’s face would probably go down in history.
Hugo looked around at the battalion commanders, approached the iron cage behind him, and grabbed the iron pillar that was slightly exposed under the blanket with his hand. With a hissing sound of water rapidly vaporizing, fierce steam rose. It was so hot that his flesh would have been cooked if he hadn’t wrapped ice around his hand.
Everything wrapped around the iron cage was fire-resistant and durable, so it seemed to be withstanding the heat he was emitting for now.
But Hugo was very worried that if even one of the various sealing tools stuck around the iron cage fell off by mistake, a very dangerous situation would arise, not to mention the flames soaring.
The guy in the iron cage was very angry right now. Moreover, the Imperial Capital would be very chaotic and noisy with news about him. If the guy he had managed to control got excited again, even Hugo wouldn’t be confident that he could completely prevent the damage.
“Commander, the Council’s Central Branch has completed access control for citizens and is on standby.”
“…Okay.”
When Flynn contacted the Central Branch outside the gate and told Hugo, he nodded lightly. But his face looked a little troubled for some reason.
Hugo shook hands with the battalion commanders one by one and finally thanked the battalion commanders and members of the Northern Branch who had escorted him here. Flynn also exchanged greetings, grabbed the reins of the horse at the front of the horses pulling the iron cage, and slowly entered the teleport portal of the gate.
And Hugo followed behind him.