Guillotine (2)
The reason I'd dragged Elysis Floren to the execution ground was simple.
I was curious if she regretted her choices.
My retainers had tried to stop me, saying it was too harsh...
But I'd pushed ahead anyway.
My power was at its peak right now.
Of course, it might not stay that way.
If the reforms succeeded and I secured a reign as stable as Aurelian's...
That would be ideal, but there were no guarantees my efforts would pay off.
All I wanted was to see the final moments of the romance fantasy's noble male lead—the main hero—watched over by his heroine.
Right in front of the sub-male lead who'd been discarded for lacking noble blood and risen through revolution to claim the throne.
"Why... why are you doing this to me...?"
Elysis Floren sobbed.
Thwack!
Thud—!
Ulysian was dragged in, beaten by the soldiers along the way.
Yet his looks still shone through.
The crowd lost themselves for a moment in his radiant beauty under the sunlight, then erupted again.
"Kill him!"
"Give me back my son!"
Eggs flew from all directions, splattering his gleaming face.
In the end, Ulysian gave up resisting and stood before the guillotine.
Then he opened his mouth.
"I am the Emperor of the Nicator Empire."
The crowd roared back in response.
"Give me back my son, you bastard!"
"Give me back my husband!"
"Do you even remember the names of the soldiers you killed?!"
Dozens more eggs sailed through the air.
Some missed Ulysian and hit the soldiers around him instead.
Poor guys.
Washing those helmets is gonna suck.
I rose from my seat and walked toward Ulysian.
He flinched, bracing for more eggs, and looked at me.
"Ulysian von Nicator."
"...Leon."
I raised the scepter, pointing it at him.
"Do you know your crimes?"
"...I don't."
"Ulysian von Nicator claims he doesn't know his crimes! Hear me, people! From this moment, I will lay bare every single one!"
I bellowed.
"First! As emperor, Ulysian von Nicator drove the empire's rightful army into the jaws of death!"
"Boooooo!"
The crowd jeered.
"On the battlefield beyond Hargen Pass, his arrogant orders shattered a force of fifty thousand!"
I paused a beat, scanning the crowd before continuing.
"Those soldiers were this nation's sons and husbands long before they were soldiers!"
Some in the crowd wiped away tears at my words.
Those tears soon turned to rage.
"Kill him! Kill him! Kill him!"
It looked like everyone wanted Ulysian dead.
"Second! He scorned the survivors as 'rabble' and trampled their honor!"
"Boooooo! Kill the emperor!"
"Instead of consoling the bereaved families, he spent their rightful pensions on luxuries! He squandered gold and jewels useless for national defense!"
"..."
This time, a heavy silence fell.
I pulled out the ledger I'd gotten from Finance Minister Oskar in advance.
They couldn't all read it, but showing the point mattered.
Showing the real thing carried weight.
"This is the imperial ledger!"
The crowd seethed in quiet fury.
No need to read more from it.
I handed the ledger to Theresia and refocused on my speech.
"Third! He wasted taxes not on Nicator, but on imperial banquets and luxuries."
This time, Elysis reacted first.
She flinched, fingers fumbling at her bare neck and hands.
I hadn't named the empress, but most of Ulysian's luxuries had gone to her.
That had to sting.
"Fourth! He recklessly sent the grand fleet east to be picked off piecemeal, isolating Hargen Pass! If I, Leon Eisen, hadn't won a miraculous naval victory, the outcome would be as we all imagine!"
"...Kill him! Kill the emperor!"
The crowd's roar dwarfed the previous one.
It wasn't just the families of the fallen screaming.
Everyone here howled like madmen.
The soldiers clashed spears and swords on shields in agreement.
"Ulysian von Nicator has far more sins, but I won't list them all! You know them better than I!"
I returned to my seat.
Everyone screamed.
The soldiers joined in.
No one would dare call my decision wrong now.
"Boo! Boo! Boo! Boo!"
The crowd thrust thumbs down, demanding Ulysian's execution.
Soldiers seized his arms and dragged him to the guillotine.
He resisted kneeling to the end, but when they raised fists to beat him, he finally dropped.
His neck settled on the block.
The collar slammed down, locking it tight.
Tears streamed from his eyes as he looked at Elysis.
"Elysis...!"
She clamped both hands over her mouth.
Ulysian gazed at her with a wistful look, as if leaving final words.
"Tell me. That I wasn't wrong."
"..."
Elysis couldn't answer.
The executioner glanced at me, awaiting the order.
"Kill him! Kill him! Kill him! Kill him!"
The crowd's fury pierced the heavens.
I responded with a thumbs-down gesture.
At my command, the rope was pulled.
Clank—
The lock released with a faint click, drowned by the roar.
Then the blade fell.
"Waaaaaaah!"
The crowd cheered.
Some wept tears of joy.
Elysis Floren's grief stood in stark contrast.
With eyes that had given up everything, she shed endless tears.
I rose, cloak billowing.
Then I ordered Theresia.
"Hang the traitor's head on the plaza monument."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"Escort the former empress, Elysis Floren, back to the detached palace."
"Yes."
I left the scene.
My chest felt unburdened.
Like I'd checked off a massive task.
Separate from that, thinking 'now it really begins' made my head throb, craving a smoke.
Under soldier escort, I returned to the palace.
The moment the gates opened, I summoned Ernst and Oskar.
"Plunder the old imperial treasury and throw a festival in the capital."
"Pardon? Y-yes..."
"And spread the word across all Nicator."
"Understood, Your Majesty."
The funny part? Elysis's luxuries alone could fund it.
Her diamond rings, magic-stone necklaces, gem-encrusted dresses, and the magically reinforced silk bodies—impossible to price.
"We have much work ahead. Rest well tonight, both of you."
"Yes."
An era had ended.
The age of Nicator rule over the Nicator Kingdom had set.
Now, I, Leon Eisen, ruled this kingdom.
Heirs...?
I'll think about that later.
Too complicated otherwise.
After changing to casual clothes, I lit a cigarette atop the palace.
Reminded me of doing the same at Anhelm's estate.
I summoned Theresia, Celine, Katharina, Natalia, and Maribel.
The moment all five arrived, I spoke.
"Time for you all to serve the kingdom."
Theresia and Celine responded calmly.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Natalia and Maribel nodded, not entirely unwilling.
Only Katharina pushed back.
"I serve the Lishumark Kingdom. I can't serve Nicator."
"...So the Dragan family holds that revived Lishumark Kingdom, right?"
"...I don't know."
"Natalia."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"Name the family that took Lishumark."
Natalia cautiously deployed magic, then answered.
"The Heinkel family."
"Heinkel...?"
Katharina's eyes widened.
Her pupils trembled.
"What's wrong?"
"The Heinkels were enemies of our royal house... How?"
"How d'you think?"
I patted her shoulder.
"When seizing the throne, does old royal legitimacy matter more, or victory over Nicator?"
"...Ah."
"Ulysian's head rolled today partly because of that. So, heading back to Heinkel-ruled Lishumark?"
"...No."
"Then swear loyalty to me."
Katharina swallowed hard.
"My words that day... weren't wrong, were they?"
"You mean declaring I'd become a conqueror, not an emperor?"
"Yes."
"They weren't."
I clenched my fist into a tight grip.
"I won't promise you can return to your homelands someday. But not now. Going back would plunge you into a second Warring States era."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Katharina knelt before me.
Maribel broke the mood, pushing up her glasses with her middle finger.
"Ahaha, I don't wanna go back to Pharos anyway..."
Smack—!!
I flicked her forehead hard.
"Do that again, and I'll snap that middle finger clean off."
Still.
It felt peaceful enough.
Hard to believe this was the day the former emperor died.