11. Betrayal

'This isn't my emotion.'

I bit my lip. Not yet. It's right to wipe out the Demon God Cult entirely, but look at my current state. There's no point in running wild here.

I killed my emotions. I tried to erase them. To hide them deep down and turn them into a dagger to stab that bastard someday. I closed my eyes for a moment. Then, after opening them, I responded with a smile.

"I'm fine, Haiken-nim."

I gripped the hand Haiken and I were holding. Very tightly. I couldn't help but put strength into my hand.

Haiken looked at me with a grin, as if it didn't even hurt.

"Heh, you're a very enthusiastic person."

Haiken shook the hand I was gripping tightly, as if it didn't hurt, and then let go. Since I couldn't keep holding it either, I let go, and Haiken stared at me intensely before looking at the pendant hanging around my neck.

"Oh... Haeil-nim, you are wearing a very fine item."

Haiken gazed at my pendant intently.

Did he sense something? Perhaps.

'As expected, it's highly likely to be an item of the Demon God Cult.'

A pendant that simultaneously displays a red mark indicating danger and a yellow mark indicating opportunity. Just like in the game, it's highly likely that items like this belong to the Demon God Cult.

'Then why did he show it to me?'

It's still vivid. Haiken's creepy smile and the young Princess's emotions. It's a mystery why he showed me something like that, but one thing is certain. Haiken, that guy from the Demon God Cult, is dangerous.

"Let's stop the small talk and talk about the operation first."

Sylvia, who was standing behind Hector, unfolded a map.

"First, our operation area is the residential area of Winter Mountain here."

"Isn't Winter Mountain that place where snow is always piled up? There's a village of this size there?"

Haiken of the Demon God Cult answered Hector's words.

"The people in the residential area are all those in the bosom of our Demon God. They are people who have been preparing for the grand plan for a very long time."

Hector didn't say anything to that and nodded.

"Then, is the content of the operation as we discussed beforehand?"

"After the Empire's hounds attack, when Princess Bella appears, we will send the signal."

"Then we just need to surround them and wipe them all out."

Haiken nodded at Hector's words. Just then, Sylvia stepped forward and raised a question.

"Encirclement and annihilation through an ambush... I understand that part. But are you really sure we can lure the Princess with something like this?"

"You lack faith, sister. Princess Bella will have no choice but to come."

Haiken stood up from his seat and smiled.

"I created a childhood memory for her."

Time flew by in an instant, and it became the day of the operation.

The place I was deployed to was the front line.

And it was the assassination squad that would go directly to strike the Princess.

"Aren't you nervous, Haeil?"

Hector was next to me. Hector stroked his sword and spoke to me.

"Is it okay for a guy like the Captain to be here?"

"Hahaha. If this operation fails, there's no Captain or anything anyway."

As he said that, Hector narrowed his eyes sharply.

"If we succeed in this, the Empire will collapse on its own. If so, it doesn't matter if I sacrifice this old man's life."

"Hey old man, don't say ominous things and just sit still. It's distracting."

Sylvia scolded him at Hector's words. At that, Hector grumbled, "Aing, you were cute when you were little," and put down his sword.

"More than that, is the Princess really coming? It's already been two days, and I don't see the Princess, just a bunch of knights."

I just stayed in my place despite that. I looked at the place where the Imperial Army was located beyond.

She will come, Princess Bella.

Haeil recalled the memory of young Bella shown by the pendant he saw back then. That emotion, the hatred for Haiken. If she has that, she can't help but come.

Just in time, as if waiting for it, news was delivered.

"The Princess has arrived!"

"Hahaha, good. Everyone knows the operation, right?"

At those words, the assassination squad I belonged to nodded as if resolved.

"But just in case, I'll say it one more time. After the knights invade the village, when the ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Princess enters inside that ridge over there, that's when we invade."

I looked at the ridge Hector pointed to. The place called Winter Mountain. A place where snow is still piled up even though it's between spring and summer.

When the Princess passes that place, we move.

I swallowed my saliva.

And took a deep breath.

"Are you nervous, Haeil?"

I nodded slightly at that.

"Hahaha. You looked fine even when escaping the Black Prison, but you're nervous about this? Don't worry. The operation will surely succeed."

I couldn't answer that. I don't know why this operation fails, but I know it does. Princess Bella will be fine, and the Revolutionary Group will be half-destroyed.

Even if I don't move, the Princess will be fine.

But even though I knew it in my head, I couldn't stop the anxiety.

'It might have already changed from what I know.'

This place is not a game. Things different from what happened in the game could occur.

What if I'm at ease and the Princess ends up dying?

The Demon God ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠will wake up just like that, and everyone will die.

To prevent that, I joined this assassination squad.

'Because if anyone is going to kill the Princess, it would be this side.'

I took a breath and looked straight ahead.

Beyond that ridge, knights in flashy attire are visible. While everyone was nervous, only one thing was clearly visible to me.

"Everyone, move to the operation area."

Princess Bella has appeared.

As soon as Princess Bella appeared, we moved quickly. The goal was to surround the Princess and the Imperial Guard.

Having moved behind the mountain ridge, we were waiting only for the signal sent by the Demon God Cult.

"Captain, but are those Demon God Cult bastards actually doing it right? They've been quiet the whole time..."

"They're creepy bastards, but their hatred for the Empire is the same. The Demon God Cult wants to get rid of the Princess more than anyone here. When the time comes, the signal will come."

The moment he said that, I saw something in the distance. Something was rising from the village. Smoke? No, the color is too strange to be smoke. Something dark red was rising from the village side.

At the same time, the Imperial Guard started to become chaotic. The Imperial Guard, which had been marching slowly, moved quickly and soon began to sprint toward the village.

"It's the signal! Everyone, charge!"

With those words, the Revolutionary Group members who were surrounding them rushed out. The Imperial Guard, who were running toward the village, discovered them and instantly changed their formation to take a defensive stance.

Swords clashed and blood splattered.

"Argh!"

People fell and were cut down.

But even in the midst of that, the assassination squad, including me, was waiting with bated breath.

"Don't let them even get near the Princess."

The Captain of the Imperial Guard is watching the battlefield from the Princess's side, sword in hand. Princess Bella is looking at the battlefield slowly, as if she's used to it.

The Revolutionary Group members in the assassination squad gritted their teeth and waited. Watching their fellow Revolutionary Group members fall, they were waiting to seize the opportunity their deaths would create.

And that opportunity came.

"Captain of the Imperial Guard! Demon God Cult bastards are in front!"

"Tsk, those vermin-like bastards are coming from front and back."

The Captain of the Imperial Guard looked at the battlefield once more and ordered.

"You, and you. Lead the men and support the front."

In the middle of the fight, knights broke away. The Imperial Guard's tactics also changed from attack to defense. They must have thought they would quickly deal with the front and come back, but that was a mistake.

"Go into charge formation."

With Hector's short command, the assassination squad burst out through the blizzard. At the very front was Hector. As Hector charged, the Imperial Guard's defense crumbled. Behind him, the Revolutionary Group members in the assassination squad moved.

They cut down the Imperial Guard in time with Hector's momentum. The solid defense was breached, and a path opened in an instant.

I also drew my sword and ran forward. My heart felt like it was going to burst. Blood splattered and people fell. I ran in the midst of such a battlefield. Countless yellow trajectories appeared before my eyes. Yellow trajectories filling my vision. Thinking that each one of those was an attack made my blood run cold.

In the distance, Princess Bella's red hair, having crossed the ridge, came into view. Her escort knights seemed to have seen the clash ahead and were maintaining a tight formation.

'Can we break through that?'

I looked at Hector, who was running at the very front.

"Hahaha! Is this all the Imperial Guard is capable of!"

Hector is swinging his massive sword and cutting down the Imperial Guard. Overwhelming martial prowess. That power is making this absurd breakthrough possible right now, but well.

'He's pretending to be fine, but how long can he hold out?'

I looked around.

"Ugh...."

"Leave me and go first!"

Revolutionary Group members starting to fall behind. Those running with me are also sustaining large and small wounds. At this rate, it seemed the operation would end in failure.

'Is it over like this?'

Of course, if this operation fails, the Revolutionary Group will take a hit. But it's not to the point of being on the verge of complete ruin like I saw in the game.

'Then what on earth....'

It was the moment I was thinking that.

My entire vision was dyed blood-red. The whole world was covered in red marks.

'What?'

I quickly looked around. And was shocked.

'What is this...!'

What on earth is this? In the chaos, I looked around to find the cause. But all I could see were red marks filling the Winter Mountain, no, the entire land we were stepping on.

Then, a sound was heard.

"Captain! What on earth is that!"

At Sylvia's voice, I turned my gaze to where she was pointing. Then, I saw a huge red gate that had appeared in the residential area.

There, Haiken was floating in the air, muttering something. At the same time, a massive magic circle, as if drawn in blood, was located beneath ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠him.

As I was looking at it, I definitely felt like Haiken, who was far away, was looking at me. No, it's certain. That damn bastard is smiling at me.

'Crazy Demon God Cult bastards.'

This was the plan from the beginning. To wipe out the Revolutionary Group, the Princess, everything. I realized it only now. I finally understood why the state of the Revolutionary Group was on the verge of destruction in the game, and why morale hit rock bottom when cooperating with the Demon God Cult.

Dark red light began to surge from under our feet. The red marks grew even larger, to the point where they were indistinguishable from the ground now.

"Everyone pull back! Retreat!"

Hector also seemed to have noticed the anomaly and ordered a retreat. The Imperial Guard also seemed to have noticed the anomaly, dropped the swords they were clashing with, and began to pull back to retreat. But it was too late.

"Your Highness! Avoid...!"

Bang-!! With an ear-splitting roar, the ground exploded. Blizzard, dust, and flames intertwined, blocking my vision.

This is the prelude. As if it hadn't even started yet, the red marks were still covering this entire land.

I gritted my teeth. No more. If I go any further, it's a pointless death. I tried to move following the retreating Revolutionary Group members. At that moment.

Bang-!

The ground exploded once again. At the same time, a loud sound was heard from the Imperial Guard side.

"Your Highness!"

Turning my gaze to that sound, the Princess's body was flying up. The nearby knights were unable to regain their senses from the aftermath of the explosion. The Princess floating in the air, and the still-present red marks.

Seeing that, I turned my body without hesitation.

"Haeil!"

Someone from the Revolutionary Group side called me, but I didn't care. I focused on my eyes. The ground exploded. The dirt and snow created by the explosion blocked my vision. Even so, I forced my eyes open to see.

'Move through the places that are the least red.'

I think I get it. Places about to explode look so red they appear black. Red means it's less dangerous.

That's how I reached the place where the Princess was.

"Ugh, you...!"

The Captain of the Imperial Guard couldn't steady his body properly, perhaps hit by the explosion.

"Do your job properly!"

I moved while avoiding the yellow trajectories heading toward me. Before I knew it, the area around the Princess, who had fallen to the ground, began to turn pitch black ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠from red.

I threw my body and hugged the Princess before the ground exploded. And I rolled on the ground as I fell.

"Argh...!"

A sound escaped me due to the terrible impact hitting my back. When I barely opened my eyes, I saw a figure trapped and lying in my arms. Her dark red hair fluttered due to the wind caused by the explosion.

"Haeil...?"

Bella's eyes looked into mine. Her pupils were shaking like crazy.