After being forced to step down, the once-annoying nun eloped with me.

Commander Alesser watched as the opposing landlords rallied the peasants, boosting their morale. He sneered twice, and the instant the Roman rebels began advancing toward his lines, he ordered his troops into battle.

Alesser's new air rifle is effective against unarmored units at 300 meters, and also has the ability to accurately kill within a range of 100 meters, and even penetrate part of a knight's breastplate within 50 meters.

Considering that the best equipment the rebels had was a short sword and a shield, the Alese decided to let them advance and then fire a volley at the closest possible range.

On the one hand, it was to test the lethality of the 300-meter efficiency against dense crowds, and on the other hand, it was to see how the air gun would damage the morale of these farmers.

The soldiers held their air rifles level, aiming at the bodies of the charging peasant soldiers, one after another.

The commander waited patiently. Just as the Roman rebels approached to within 500 meters...

"Fire!"

Puff puff puff—!

The unique crisp sound of the air gun firing accompanied the flying of lead pellets or steel balls, and the dense bullets immediately brought down the first two rows of Roman rebels.

The Romani charge came to an abrupt halt. All the farmers, their tools raised high, stared in astonishment at their fallen comrades.

They seemed unable to comprehend why their comrade in front of them would fall instantly with a sharp, cracking sound. They stared, dumbfounded, at the large, cratered holes in their comrade's face, at the brain matter and blood flowing from them.

But even in their daze, the Roman rebels realized one thing.

If you are in the front row when the next shot is fired.

Then you'll definitely be the one who dies!

The morale of the Roman rebels collapsed immediately.

They retreated in terror at a speed faster than a charge, and the Alese gave them no chance to escape.

Their soldiers did not pull the bolt at all, because the spring mechanism on the gun would push the next bullet into the barrel and fire it at any time. So all they had to do was fire salvo after salvo according to the orders of the various sergeants.

Puff puff puff—!

One after another, crisp sounds rang out as the bodies of Roman's rebels piled up higher and higher.

Some tried to use their shields to block the attacks of unseen weapons, but the fragile shields were pierced by the bullets, and the flying debris caused these shield bearers more and more unnecessary pain, making them howl as they faced the next round of fire.

Others were smarter; realizing that those things couldn't penetrate the thick cover, they hid behind trees or behind the camp's wagons.

But many more had already fled in panic, breaking through the blockade lines in other areas and bringing the Roman rebels in other places to the brink of collapse. The Alese people's initial victory in Roman territory quickly ended in a perfect triumph.

They did not choose to advance further; in the recent battle, almost every shooter had fired more than ten rounds.

They had to rest temporarily in this city that had been reclaimed by the Roman royal family, using the ammunition molds they carried with them and the lead or steel in the city to forge their own ammunition in preparation for possible upcoming encounters.

"So, what's the overall situation?"

"The damage and morale blow to unarmored units is very significant, but the problem is, the enemy is just a bunch of peasants." The scout shrugged, stepping on the head of a Roman rebel corpse on the ground, and used his short knife to cut open the corpse's clothes, revealing the emaciated body underneath: "Just a bunch of starving peasants."

"Then we'll only calculate the lethality, not the morale-damaging effect—that's settled. Send someone to Drake Harbor immediately to deliver this message to our homeland; we can't afford to slow down our weapons development."

"Yes."

The scout bowed and then turned and left.

The commander of the Alessars looked at the city that had sprung up before him and muttered to himself that if these places were Alessar territory, wouldn't their conquest of the world be just around the corner?

Unfortunately, the Romans were incredibly stupid. Fortunately, the Romans were incredibly stupid.

Commander Alesser sighed something. But his sighs were destined to remain unheard by the people of the Roman capital.

............

The Roman capital, now the heart of the entire empire, is suffering greatly from both rebellion and the end of a drought.

Even the citizens of the capital were worried that this fire might burn their own heads, let alone the nobles who already had ulterior motives.

Although none of this had much to do with the young queen, former court president Natalia knew all too well that the most difficult times were just beginning.

"Anna, come... let's rest here for now."

Every day brought them closer together. In the little queen's heart, Natalia had become like a mother to her.

As for Natalia, she truly treated Anna like her own daughter. It was precisely because of this that Natalia constantly paid attention to changes in the outside world.

In the capital, the most obvious change is related to Prince Garsen.

On January 13th, Prince Garsen was to lead a delegation to the military district to discuss a major matter with General Dreschka. Since the military district could only reach a consensus after a secret meeting with Prince Garsen, and because General Dreschka was unwilling to discuss the matter in the capital city where many spies were present, Prince Garsen had no choice but to personally lead the troops, and incidentally meet up with the Alesers along the way.

Natalia was unsure what this meeting would bring, but she knew very well that for the current Roman Empire and the current Roman royal family, the military region was a force that needed to be won over.

Who could blame them when the Holy Maiden and the High Priest in the North were locked in a life-or-death struggle? And who could blame them when the nobles and landowners in other regions harbored their own ulterior motives? Under these circumstances, General Dreschka became Garsen's only potential ally...

Moreover, Prince Garsen is also preparing to completely abandon the portal network.

These portals were already unable to receive necessary maintenance due to the demolition of the steam factory. After nearly two years without maintenance, the portals in various locations are likely to close directly due to unforeseen events, or slowly and completely break down.

With earthquakes sweeping across Roman and causing some areas to rise several meters, these portals, which were already at risk of closing at any moment, were almost completely destroyed...

The destruction of the portal network would mean the complete destruction of the Roman Empire's most convenient means of transportation and trade routes. When everything had to revert to the original national road trade, the power of the military districts would become especially important... because only the military districts could ensure the safety of the prosperous trade routes, and only the military districts could ensure the capital's control over other national roads.

On the other hand, if the Roman Empire were to completely split up one day, wouldn't there be a situation where the parish faction, the nobles continue to split, and then the military district and the royal family unite as one faction?

Natalia was pondering something when the little queen suddenly made a whimpering sound, prompting Natalia to quickly wipe the saliva from the corner of her mouth.

The little queen's tongue had not received proper treatment, and all Natalia could do was combine disinfectant alcohol with some cold drinks, clumsily trying to prevent the infection from spreading further, while also hoping that her regent would arrive soon.

Ultimately, however, the little queen's tongue wasn't the most dangerous thing. For Natalia, the most dangerous thing was that the little queen was being watched by too many people.

From her observation, at least six factions were opposing the Little Queen. One of them was naturally Garsen, and the Witch of the Night was watching from outside the courtyard... But of the remaining five factions, apart from the elves who had been keeping watch, it was almost certain that they were all related to the nobility.

Their gazes were terrifying. Just from their eyes, Natalia's icy heart could draw the worst conclusion: if the little empress fell into their hands, she would only face endless torment.

After all, everyone wanted to use Roman blood for something, from the worst-case scenario of continuously producing heirs to the Roman Empire through union with the little empress, to simply killing the little empress to vent their anger... These beastly nobles didn't even realize that the culprit behind everything was that Garsen—which made the former court president extremely angry and helpless.

Why are the nobles of the Roman Empire so short-sighted? Why is the law of the Roman Empire now just a decoration?

...She sighed. Just then, Natalia suddenly noticed Anna staring at something.

Following Anna's gaze, Natalia noticed in the distance that Prince Garsen's newly hired handsome servant was watching them.

Those eyes, like those of a venomous snake, carried a mixture of pity and regret, but even more so, an appetite akin to that of someone eyeing food...

She shuddered. She hadn't forgotten that Garsen had been acting increasingly strangely lately.

If at the beginning Garsen was a madman, a scoundrel who would do anything for power, then now, after the parish's defeat and the central district's rebellion, he has become increasingly depraved under the patron's service...

Natalia meant that he had already fallen enough—but now Garsen had fallen to the point of being indifferent to power while still wielding immense influence...isn't that...a bit too strange?

The changes are happening so fast... and all of them have happened since that servant arrived.

She had reason to believe that the servant was problematic—but what exactly was wrong was beyond Natalia's ability to figure out.

Because under normal circumstances she has no way to contact that servant, and the opportunity to even meet him now is only once every few days.

(I just hope the other person is intelligent... after all, Anna can't die yet.)

The former presiding judge sighed again. Although she had vowed to protect the poor girl, she wasn't sure exactly how.

Anyway, in terms of the order of sacrifice, she should definitely be at the very beginning—hmm?

Suddenly, Natalia vaguely saw a leaf drift down from a tree in the courtyard.

Whether intentionally or not, the leaf floated in front of Natalia, turned over, and revealed tiny writing on it to her.

The 13th... in the evening?

......

She gently picked up little Anna, who was sitting in a daze. As she passed the leaf, she deliberately stepped on it, knowing that the witch would never care about a small leaf, let alone one that had been stepped on.

............

Meanwhile, in Garsen's office.

Garsen is preparing for his upcoming meeting with General Dreschka.

Given that he had to personally lead the operation and the portal to the target city was damaged, Garsen planned to take more than half of the garrison and mages from the capital. After carefully planning the route, he determined that his side would meet up with the Aresers to directly obtain the assistance of this fresh force.

From his meeting with General Dreschka, he roughly knew what the other party was thinking.

One reason might be to strengthen the relationship between the military region and the capital, but that's just the appetizer.

The real main course may be related to General Dreschuka's ambitions.

This warlord had long been annoyed by the mess that the domestic nobles were making.

He desperately needed to secretly obtain the power to wage war against the nobles from Prince Garsen before they made things worse.

This power certainly cannot be openly issued and sent out by the Queen—because if it were, the one who made the secret pact with General Dreschka would not be [Gasen] but [Anna].

Even minor differences in the contract could potentially affect the future situation. Therefore, Jason took this matter very seriously and felt he had to go there in person.

Of course, this was also because he had great confidence in the defenses of the capital.

After all, the Roman capital was, in a sense, the most fortified town in the Roman Empire. Under the leadership of his brother Benjamin Roman, the town's defenses were laid out in a perfectly angular shape.

At various key locations within the rhombus-shaped city, numerous old-fashioned crossbows stood ready. Not to mention the mage towers nestled between the towers and the mage towers belonging to the Night Witch within the palace!

The mage tower is not only the residence of mages and an important place for their work and life, but also the most important part of a city's defense.

Around the mage tower, mages receive a supply of magic power accumulated over many years. They can squander their magic power at will, even if the magic power of the entire area is completely depleted, as mages can continue to cast spells recklessly until the mage tower's magic reserves are exhausted.

With the help of the Mage Tower, mages are virtually invincible when on the defensive! At least until their mana is completely depleted.

Under these circumstances, Garsen could be said to be extremely confident in the safety of the capital. Especially with the future presence of the elite Alessar troops, even if the entire Imperial Knights were to go out to quell a rebellion, this city would still be the most fortified city in the Roman Empire, without exception.

Not to mention the Night Witch is also present throughout the palace...

"Although she is a person who shirks responsibility... as long as she is in the palace, the entire Roman Palace is an impregnable fortress... Although her night magic has no direct killing power, as long as it can blind the intruders, then no matter how many intruders come, they are destined to perish on the palace tiles."

Garsen muttered to himself. Yes, perhaps the Night Witch was notorious for shirking responsibility and for being notoriously cowardly—but the Night Witch was, after all, a witch, the pinnacle of magicians in the Roman Empire!

Her mere presence in the capital was the greatest threat to those who harbored resentment. Her ability to unleash blinding magic on the battlefield was enough to send any intruders to their doom in darkness.

As long as she remains in the capital, the capital is safe. As long as she continues to monitor his niece, no one can steal the most important puppet from the palace!

This is why Garsen felt at ease preparing everything needed for his meeting with General Dreschka. This is also why Garsen was reading General Dreschka's secret letter at this moment, instead of sitting idly in his recreation room.

He frowned as he examined the secret letter in his hand. Besides General Dreschka's own needs, the letter revealed the general's unease about a city that had suddenly sprung up in the northwest, and his bewilderment at the increasingly frequent activities of the elves. But this was not the most important thing.

Most importantly, General Dreschka mentioned the possible movements of the barbarians who were driven out of Roan, specifically the barbarians from the north of the forest.

They were a group of nomadic tribes of different races on the grasslands. Before being ruled by the Khan, these tribes fought each other, and in a sense, individual barbarian tribes were no different from a band of mounted bandits.

Before being ruled by the same Khan, they were very weak, their society even less developed than the current aristocratic system of the Roman Empire. Although they were numerous and migrated freely across the steppes, these barbarians were not the weak enemies that the Roman Empire needed to worry about now, as long as they didn't have a Khan.