'No! There's still one last hope! I'm standing with ordinary civilians now!' Samge almost frantically tried to grasp at this last straw.
He looked up, and through hundreds of people, his bloodshot eyes met Nero's.
His hair instantly stood on end.
'No, it's no use, there's no saving us! In that monster's eyes, we're already dead!'
Samge despaired, seeing no possibility of survival.
Gradually, others in the crowd also recognized that the true identity of this red dragon was Nero.
Breathing a silent sigh of relief, everyone looked at Samge, hoping he would step forward and do something.
The person changed from Duke Livord to the Emperor, but in the eyes of most, this didn't matter much. Standing with civilians, these high and mighty 'gentlemen' would be helpless.
Some even regained their courage and shouted loudly at the red dragon: "Tyrant! We will not back down!"
This shout brought everyone back to their senses, and they felt a bit ashamed. They were all battle-hardened individuals, yet they had been frightened by the Little Emperor's appearance.
How embarrassing!
As if to prove they were no worse than others, more voices spoke up.
"That's right! If you're going to be a pirate, leave Nicuss!"
"You're not welcome here! Go find your Great Treasure, pirate!"
"Expelling civilians, building the Golden Palace, Tyrant, you don't deserve to be the Emperor of Nicuss!"
"That's right, oppressing us common people, the Nicuss Empire, only Lord Samge can lead us to a better life!"
When this last sentence came out, it was as if a switch had been flipped, and everyone echoed it.
In their opinion, after such a commotion, Nero, to appease them, would at least have to grant Samge a noble status to calm the situation.
Therefore, everyone began to shout without reservation.
"That's right! We only trust Mr. Samge!"
"Only Mr. Samge is our savior!"
"Tyrant! Retreat now and we can still talk, otherwise, an all-out war awaits you!"
[What are you idiots talking about? Savior? Who? All-out war? Can't you see that monster's eyes?]
Samge, who was seen as a savior, was still frozen in place. The surrounding voices seemed to come from a very distant place. He felt as if even standing in the center of the crowd, he was still face-to-face with that monster.
"Mr. Samge, why don't you say something?"
"That's right! Whatever your choice, everyone trusts you!"
"That's right! We will always follow you, Mr. Samge!"
[Idiots! Stop talking! Don't look at me! Damn it! My position is exposed!]
Internally cursing frantically, Samge's body could not make any response.
Finally, the red dragon on the mountaintop spoke. From her hideous and enormous body, a clear, girlish voice, not matching her appearance and still carrying a hint of tenderness, rang out.
"Hmm, so the so-called Revolutionary Army is such a rabble? How displeasing. My first personal expedition is for you low-class rabble!"
The unexpectedly contemptuous words stunned everyone.
What's going on?
Isn't she here to appease us?
Could it be a show of force?
But Samge, hearing this, finally couldn't hold back anymore and collapsed to his knees.
"Surrender! I surrender! Your Majesty, I didn't mean to! No, I still have value, this is all a conspiracy of the World Government!!!"
Realizing that his thoughtless words wouldn't convince anyone, Samge quickly changed his tune and began to emphasize his value!
"I just took a wrong turn for a moment. I am also a native-born Nicussian! Your Majesty, spare my life!"
Kneeling and kowtowing, he was utterly disheveled, with no trace of resolve left on his face.
Dirt mixed with blood from his forehead, along with snot and tears, Samge looked incredibly comical.
This action stunned everyone present, who watched the scene in disbelief.
Someone even murmured: "Mr. Samge... what are you doing?"
And Samge continued to expose himself: "It's all these idiots! They are dissatisfied with Your Majesty's rule. I gathered them together precisely for this moment!"
"Your Majesty! My heart is entirely for the better development of the Nicuss Empire!!!"
"Mwahahaha! He truly is a comical fellow, I'm even amused by him!"
Nero laughed up to the sky, looking at Samge with some speechlessness. This guy would truly say anything to survive.
"Yes... yes, yes! To be honest, Your Majesty, I'm best at making people laugh. If I live, I can make Your Majesty happy every day."
Samge seemed not to hear the mockery in Nero's words, but instead took advantage of the situation and continued shamelessly.
"Hmm, that's a good suggestion! But Livord is always frowning, he should need you more. I will bestow you upon him. Be sure to make him happy!"
Nero spread her wings and slowly flew into the air, speaking in a teasing tone.
Below, Samge was overjoyed, so much so that he didn't even hear Livord's name clearly.
He hastily kowtowed again, pressing his forehead firmly to the ground, his words full of relief.
"Thank you, Your Majesty! Thank you, Your Majesty! I swear I will definitely make Lord Livord... Liv... Lord Livord..."
Samge, realizing the name sounded a bit off, looked up, and a questioning sound escaped his lips as he looked at Nero in the sky.
"Eh?"
Orange-red flames rained down from the sky, constantly changing direction, evenly scorching everyone.
"I am not the Revolutionary Army!!!"
"Your Majesty, you're mistaken!!!"
"I am a civilian!!!"
"Tyrant, I won't let you off even as a ghost!"
"Nicuss will be destroyed in your hands!"
Cries and curses were incessant, but Nero did not stop her attack.
Among the people below, some might indeed have been innocent, as they claimed.
But how does that saying go?
Killing everyone might lead to wrongful deaths, but killing every other person would definitely leave half the culprits at large.
When Nero stopped her attack, no one below was left alive. Flames consumed houses, trees, and people.
The smell was somewhat unpleasant for Nero, who had transformed into a dragon. She did not linger, flapping her wings and leaving the area.
"Hmm, Hathaway, there's no need to extinguish the fire. Let it burn all the filth clean."
Nero, having landed on the coastline and transformed into human form, instructed Hathaway: "Hang the few stragglers on the gallows. I won't personally go looking for them anymore."
"Aye! Your command!" Hathaway placed her hand on her chest and bowed her head.
"Hmm, this is the third one. Are there any more? I want to finish all this before tea time."
Nero nodded in satisfaction and continued to ask.
"This is the last one. Samgo Kukurov was also here, and he turned to ash along with Your Majesty's dragon flames."
"Hmm? Those people just now?"
Nero remembered the man who had knelt. Now that it was mentioned, she seemed to recall someone calling him that.
She had never paid attention to Samge's appearance from beginning to end. She didn't expect him to be among that group of people?
...Hmm, they truly are a thoroughly unpresentable rabble.
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