"Come on then, Imperial dogs! I'm not afraid of you!"
"Imperial dogs! You won't be jumping around for long! We will claim the final victory!"
"Glory to our great cause!"
...
Standing atop the city wall, Selene listened to the prisoners below shouting defiantly. She found it almost tiresome. Such high morale... they're making me feel like the one who lost here. She turned and asked, "Esdeath, you're certain these are all the infiltrators? No one slipped through?"
"Yes, General," Esdeath replied confidently. "According to yesterday's interrogation of those who attacked the execution grounds, these are the last rebel agents remaining in Patripol City."
Seeing the satisfied look on Esdeath's face, Selene understood—after all, given how many rebel spies had been captured, Esdeath must have thoroughly enjoyed her interrogation spree.
"Hm. It's about time we march on the southwestern tribes. We've wasted too much time purging these rebel agents in Patripol City."
Selene lifted her gaze to the crowd of captives below. "In that case, kill them all. Keeping them alive only wastes rations and disturbs the peace."
Her voice wasn't lowered. Her words carried clearly to the prisoners below. Some glared at her with hatred, others screamed curses, and a few simply collapsed, faces twisted in despair.
"For those shouting the loudest," Selene said coldly, "impale them all." Her tone was devoid of emotion—these people weren't even worth her personal attention.
You want to act tough? Be a hero? Fine—I'll make you one.
Selene was not a forgiving person. Anyone who dared stand before her and spew insults would get no mercy. This wasn't some sentimental drama where enemies admired each other's courage.
"Yes, ma'am!" ×N
"The General has ordered—capture the ringleaders! Hang all the others!"
As the Imperial soldiers closed in from all sides, the remaining prisoners rallied their last bit of strength and fought back. They knew full well that even surrender wouldn't save them now.
"Kill them!"
But what could starving, half-naked prisoners do against trained soldiers clad in full armor and armed to the teeth? They were slaughtered with grim efficiency, their bodies soon becoming nourishment for the earth.
The few remaining captives were, of course, the ones who had shouted the loudest. For them, death would not come easily.
Splurt! Splurt!
Ahhhhh—!
...
The next day, after Selene's 8th Imperial Guard Legion departed, the Revolutionary Army's intelligence officers—disorganized and leaderless—finally gathered at Patripol Province's capital to seek answers.
But the sight that greeted them froze their blood.
Their direct superior, Nal—his severed head was mounted on the city gate. Worse still, many of their comrades, stripped naked, were impaled and displayed for all to see beside the gate of Patripol City.
Wooden stakes were driven through their bodies, entering from the rear and bursting from their mouths, leaving the corpses impaled high against the sky. Crows and vultures pecked at the bodies, filling the air with the stench of decay.
No one had survived. Every officer they knew had been brutally executed.
The intelligence agents who had come to report trembled uncontrollably at the grisly scene. A cold dread shot up their spines, freezing their blood.
"Th-the Chief... Lord Nal... he's dead?! They're all dead!!"
"Wh-what... what do we do now?"
"R-report... report to headquarters!"
...
Whoooosh—
A violent gust swept across the wasteland, stirring clouds of dust into the air.
"We should be nearing the border region now," Selene said, shielding her eyes. Through the storm of sand, she could faintly make out tall structures in the distance.
"Yes, General. That's Yule Mountain Pass—the Empire's southwestern frontier," the local official leading the way replied respectfully.
As they drew closer, Selene realized that what she had seen wasn't a cluster of buildings, but a single massive wall.
Built of gray stone, the wall stood firm against the wind and sand. Its surface was weathered and pitted—clearly it hadn't been maintained for over a century.
Even this alone spoke volumes about the Empire's gradual decay. Such a crucial defensive line, left to crumble without repair... and this pass was supposed to stand as the Empire's first defense against the southwestern tribes.
Yule Mountain Pass—its name spoke for itself. This fortress marked the border between the Empire's southern and western frontiers, a crucial chokepoint for Imperial defense. On either side of the pass stretched towering mountain ranges that formed the natural border of the Empire. Their peaks were capped with snow year-round, and their cliffs were sheer and impassable.
Aside from the narrow valley between the mountains, large-scale troop movements were impossible. The harsh climate of the southwestern region made resources scarce, while poisonous mists and venomous creatures claimed countless lives. As a result, the southwestern tribes that inhabited the region survived mainly through fishing and hunting. Over generations, their customs had bred a fierce and martial people—men and women alike were warriors.
Whenever famine struck, they would often cross into Imperial territory in small raiding bands to plunder grain and livestock. The fertile lands of the Empire's central plains had long been the object of their envy.
This time, several of the largest southwestern tribes, spurred on by the southern Revolutionary Army, once again rose in aggression—hoping to carve a chunk of flesh from the Empire's weakened body.
With the tribes' sudden assault and the rebels' coordination from within, Yule Mountain Pass had fallen more than half a month ago. The tribes had since fortified the stronghold, using it as a base to launch repeated incursions into Imperial lands.
As the winds howled across the wasteland, Selene's 8th Imperial Guard Legion began to form ranks before the fortress, the officers already barking orders without waiting for her command.
"The tribes always fight like this," grumbled a local Imperial garrison officer beside her. "They strike quickly and retreat as soon as the Empire sends troops. Once our army withdraws, they reappear in small raiding parties to harass our supply lines—it's maddening!"
Selene pulled the reins, bringing her horse to a halt. Her crimson eyes studied the massive fortress ahead. "A guerrilla strategy, then? That means most of their fighting force is concentrated within the pass?"
The officer nodded. "Yes, General. The terrain here is treacherous—no way to flank them. The pass can be defended or attacked as needed, but its structure favors defense. Most of their main force is stationed inside."
"Damn those rebels," the officer growled, his fists trembling. "If not for their betrayal, Yule Mountain Pass would never have fallen!"
He turned toward her again, hesitating. "General, what are your orders? A prolonged siege? Rotating assaults?"
Selene smiled faintly and shook her head. "I don't have time to waste here. This fortress will fall—today."
The officer stared at her, dumbfounded. "T-this... that's impossible—!"
"Oh? Is it?" Selene replied coolly, dismounting in one smooth motion. Her armored high-heeled boots struck the ground with sharp, deliberate clicks—clack, clack. "Then watch closely."
Her voice was calm, yet the air around her seemed to tremble.
The bewildered officer was quickly pulled back by Selene's Imperial Guards, confusion still written across his face.
Selene looked toward the towering walls of Yule Mountain Pass, her lips curving into a faint smile.
"It's about time," she murmured softly. "Let's see what happens when I let the Honkai begin to erode this world."