The Bitter Aftermath of My Late Regret
In the face of the rebel army commander.
The man who introduced himself by the name Cromwell stood before Jane with a calm voice and offered one thing.
“Would you like to hear my personal opinion? In my view as a warrior, it is far more meaningful for you to live than to meet death on the battlefield.”
“…”
It was a story that might even sound unpleasant to someone like Jane, who had come here prepared to meet death.
Yet at the same time, because she knew her own limits, Jane could only agree that the words held multiple reasons of logic.
Honestly, she didn’t even know how to shoot a gun. How much use could she be on the battlefield? The same applied to the others who had come here with her.
On the other hand, the words Cromwell had spoken now might not involve spilling blood on the battlefield, but if done well, they could deliver a devastating blow to the Empire.
Moreover… it could also mean preventing future unfortunate people from joining us. Rather than falling for revenge alone with no meaning…
After deciding in her heart, Jane looked at the rebel army commanders before her and spoke with resolve in her voice.
“Understood. As I said earlier, if it is for revenge, I have already sworn to follow any order. I will follow that will.”
“Good.”
At Jane’s answer, Cromwell’s lips curved into a faint smile.
—
“What kind of talk is this? That you cannot punish them?”
The blonde-haired female warrior with golden eyes shouted in fury.
Once Cromwell’s adjutant, she was now the new knight commander of the Imperial army after Cromwell deserted.
Olivier Hendrick said to the arrogant General Neto who was idly tapping his cane in front of her, her voice trembling.
“Why… why must it be this way? They are the ones who carried out merciless massacres against civilians! It is the principle that we should govern them with military discipline and restore order, is it not?”
“Stop making such a fuss over nothing. What’s so noisy about it?”
“They slaughtered the Empire’s people! The Imperial army, which is supposed to protect its people, is killing them and stealing their property!”
“It wasn’t even a violation of orders. It happened during the process of replenishing supplies. Are you saying we should punish the commander over that?”
“Yes! You must! Of course! Not only is the public sentiment in this colonial land greatly shaken, but at a time like this, the rumor that the Imperial army killed residents could make it even worse!”
“Tsk. Even if that rumor spreads, how far will it go… don’t make a fuss over a few dozen peasants.”
“Commander!”
“If you handle this matter wrongly, it will only worsen relations with the native warriors. Besides, I hear that the natives’ movements have been poor lately with the chieftain, and punishing a native-born commander like Gande at such a time will clearly have consequences, won’t it?”
“…”
General Neto’s words carried a cool warning.
At that moment, Olivier’s words were completely blocked.
“After becoming knight commander, you act as if you’ve become something. But your vision is still too narrow. Choosing between a few dozen peasants and hundreds or thousands of native warriors—there’s no need to say which is correct!”
“Commander!”
“It is wartime now. Once victory is secured and there is room to spare, then we can care for the people. Stop speaking nonsense and go manage the knightly orders properly!”
“…”
“Answer?”
“Y-yes… Commander…”
With no choice but to answer the superior’s words, Olivier walked out of the command post with a heavy step.
Her eyes began to fill with tears alongside the emotion of despair.
Why… why did it turn out like this? What… what exactly caused…?
It was
Tears born of despair over the actions she had done thoughtlessly up until now.
At first glance, it was under the excuse of serving the Empire…
But the true reality was
It stemmed from a feeling of regret over the personal desires she had acted upon.
If only… if only I hadn’t betrayed him… it wouldn’t have become like this… such a horrific thing would never have happened…
Without a doubt, it was the defeat of the Empire army they thought they would win in the battle that followed.
Just that much, one could have accepted it.
War sometimes means winning, sometimes losing.
However, the aftershock that followed that incident was
Even though it was a native-born rebel commander who had acted rashly, the fact that civilians who were supposed to be protected by the Imperial army had been massacred was
Something that shook even her belief in the Empire army she had maintained until now.
If only that person were here… if only Cromwell Commander were here…
—
Since the moment she entered the army, the woman who lived as Cromwell’s vice-commander, Olivier.
To her, the man named Cromwell was not merely a superior. He was a being with more meaning than that.
The superior who had guided her life, the teacher she respected more than anyone else.
And at the same time… the person she had held in her heart since the first moment she saw him.
With feelings of respect, admiration, and affection, Olivier gazed at that man.
During that process, she had one goal in mind.
A man who had everything except perhaps his status—unparalleled skill, handsome appearance, and excellent character—and who was someone she could not lose, she would make him solely hers.
Only for her, looking only at her.
She knew it would not be easy.
Already beside him was Clara, a person closer than her, and Richard, her senior, along with ‘that person’ who had left for another unit after the situation changed.
Surrounded by competitors who were none of them easy, an irresistible existence.
A single man who held value worth staking her entire life.
To claim him, she had been watching for opportunities at every moment.
And one day, the opportunity she had been waiting for finally came to her.
Through a chance encounter, she learned of Clara and General Neto’s affair.
And about their conspiracy to expel Cromwell in connection with that.
At first, Olivier had simply thought it would be better to tell Cromwell about this matter, but soon she decided differently.
At this opportunity, she would not only expel Clara but remove all the light-headed fellows gathering around Cromwell.
To achieve this, Olivier pretended to cooperate with their conspiracy to induce Cromwell’s expulsion.
At the same time, she actively collected evidence related to this matter.
Once Cromwell was driven from his position, she would immediately burst the evidence she had collected to rescue him, then comfort his wounds and build his favor to become his only woman.
However,
Her plan was terribly failed in the process.
Cromwell had noticed the signs in advance and surrendered to the rebels.
To her, it was as if the fish she had caught had slipped from her grasp.
And the incident did not end there, but immediately became a major blow to the Imperial army, and even made her belief shake.
Feeling total despair in the overall situation,
She began to struggle with the pain over these horrific things her brief thought had brought about.
—
Recently occurring incidents.
While watching them by his side, Franklin could not help but be deeply fascinated.
It was so… Indeed, Cromwell Commander. The opportunity you mentioned yesterday was precisely this. That meant you knew from the beginning that all of this would happen.
Looking back, the Empire army, starving for supplies, had no choice but to take risks to hold on.
And the simplest way to do so was to seize the possessions of the powerless residents nearby.
Of course, the fact that such actions would greatly worsen local public sentiment was obvious as day, but in the face of starving soldiers quickly turning into armed rebels, it was a choice they had no alternative.
However, this was truly a drastic prescription.
In such a rapidly changing situation, there was room for enormous variables to act on the already severely worsened public sentiment.
Though the crowd appeared powerless, history had already proven that the most terrifying thing about a crowd was its power.
Just as one small spark ignites a mountain, this ‘small’ mistake committed by the Empire army had begun to produce results they could not imagine.