Chapter 335: A New Empire (Part 3)

Facing the incoming wave of Imperial Guards, Esdeath sneered, lightly stomping the ground with her right foot. Instantly, countless ice spikes erupted from the ground, impaling all the charging soldiers. The entire courtyard echoed with their agonized screams.

Esdeath then glanced at the people on the palace walls, snorted coldly, and waved her hand. In the next moment, the entire courtyard and palace were engulfed in a blinding white frost. People, buildings—everything was frozen in an instant by Esdeath's power.

"Lady Esdeath." Shortly after the palace was frozen, Liver, the leader of the Three Beasts, arrived with a squad of soldiers.

"Is it over?" Esdeath asked calmly as Liver knelt before her.

"The capital has been secured," Liver replied respectfully.

The Northern Army had always been superior to the Central Army of the capital. Combined with the Three Beasts, who wielded imperial weapons, the capital's forces barely resisted. Apart from General Bude's personal guards, the rest of the troops either surrendered or offered no real resistance.

This was also due to the fact that there were no imperial weapon users among the capital's forces. If there had been, the battle might have lasted longer. The difference between imperial weapon users and ordinary soldiers was immense, especially since the Three Beasts possessed weapons capable of large-scale attacks. Any one of them could take on hundreds of enemies alone.

"Stabilize the city. Anyone who plots rebellion will be executed without mercy."

"Understood."

Esdeath's Northern Army was the most disciplined of the empire's forces. While some members of the Three Beasts, like Nyau and Daidas, had cruel tendencies, they mainly targeted enemies and criminals. Ordinary citizens had little to fear from them.

"Why did General Esdeath rebel? Have I not treated her well enough? Could it be that I truly did something wrong?" In the depths of the palace's underground chambers, the young emperor, who had descended with Prime Minister Onest, was filled with rage. His right hand, gripping his scepter, dug so deeply into his palm that blood dripped from his clenched fist.

The young emperor's nature wasn't inherently evil. He had always wanted to govern the empire well. However, the empire's corruption was far beyond his ability to change. Having grown up in the palace and never leaving its confines, he had no understanding of the suffering of the people. To him, Prime Minister Onest had always been a kind, loyal minister, filling the emperor's head with the idea that the empire was at peace, and the rebels were nothing more than a minor nuisance.

With no access to external information, the emperor naturally believed everything Onest told him. In truth, much of the blame for the current state of affairs also fell on General Bude. The empire's problems were too large to hide from someone of his rank, yet his blind loyalty and rigid nature had led to this crisis.

"Your Majesty need not worry. These are nothing more than traitors. Once Your Majesty activates the supreme imperial weapon, we will crush the rebels, and no one will dare to defy you again," Onest assured the emperor, immediately deflecting the blame onto the revolutionary army and Esdeath.

"These traitors will not escape my wrath!" The young emperor, who had been wracked with guilt, now nodded firmly after hearing Onest's words.

"The empire has reached this state because of General Bude's failures, and he must be punished accordingly," Onest continued, seizing the opportunity to shift more blame onto Bude.

"General Bude..." The emperor fell silent upon hearing this. If it had been anyone else, he would have immediately followed Onest's suggestion. However, Bude was different. His father had specifically instructed him to trust Bude before passing away.

"How amusing. The empire's greatest parasite is pretending to be its most loyal servant." Just as the emperor hesitated, and Onest prepared to heap more blame on Bude, another voice echoed through the underground chamber.

The sudden voice made Onest immediately draw his pistol, his face filled with vigilance as he looked toward the source of the sound.

"Who are you? How dare you break in here!" Onest shouted when he saw a figure standing on a raised platform, their back turned to him and the emperor.

"It's you!" Onest's eyes widened in shock as the figure turned around. It was none other than Daniel Davis. As the vice-captain of the Jaegers, Onest was naturally familiar with him.

"Who is he?" the emperor asked.

The emperor had never met Daniel. Technically, as the vice-captain of the Jaegers, Daniel should have paid respects to the emperor. But he had no interest in bowing to the young ruler, so he had avoided the formalities.

"He's the vice-captain of the Jaegers," Onest explained, raising his left hand to fire several shots at Daniel on the high platform.

"Protego!" As Onest raised his hand, Daniel responded by lifting his right hand, holding a wand, and pointing it forward.

Bang bang bang.

The bullets from Onest's gun were stopped by an invisible barrier in front of Daniel. With his personal power growing, so too had Daniel's mastery of magic. After all, he was a sorcerer from Kamar-Taj.

In terms of magical power alone, even Voldemort, Dumbledore, and Grindelwald combined wouldn't stand a chance against him.

Bang bang bang.

Seeing that his bullets had no effect, Onest did not stop. Instead, he emptied the entire clip of his pistol at Daniel.

"Why... Why does everyone betray me? What did I do wrong?" the emperor suddenly shouted, standing up and angrily yelling at Daniel.

"You didn't do anything wrong, but you're part of the royal family, aren't you? Stupefy." As Daniel spoke, he aimed his wand at the emperor. A red flash shot from the wand, hitting the emperor and knocking him unconscious.

Thud. The emperor collapsed to the ground.

"Where do you think you're going, Onest? Cruciatus." Seeing Onest trying to flee after the emperor's collapse, Daniel smirked. He pointed his wand, and one of the Unforgivable Curses, the Cruciatus Curse, flew toward Onest.

This was Daniel's first time using one of the three Unforgivable Curses. In the Harry Potter world, these spells were feared by wizards everywhere. But for Daniel, the Unforgivable Curses weren't particularly impressive.

He had never bothered to use the Killing Curse, Avada Kedavra. If he wanted to kill someone, using a gun would be far more efficient.

Still, the Cruciatus Curse had its uses for today. It was perfect for inflicting pain.

Anyone struck by the Cruciatus Curse would feel excruciating pain, as though their heart was being torn apart. Repeated exposure to the curse could either drive a person mad or kill them, depending on the strength of their will.

It wasn't the Killing Curse that made the Death Eaters so feared—it was the Cruciatus Curse.

"Aaah!"

Onest's screams of agony filled the underground chamber as the curse took hold, causing him to writhe in unbearable pain. As the empire's prime minister, a man of immense power, Onest had never experienced such torment.

"This curse seems more effective than torturing him myself," Daniel remarked, nodding slightly as he watched Onest suffer.

In recent months, Daniel had focused his training on physical techniques, energy control, and true essence. But he hadn't neglected his magical studies.

After all, he was the Sorcerer Supreme of Kamar-Taj.

"I think he can handle a few more rounds," Daniel thought as he flicked his wand and cast several more Cruciatus Curses on the writhing Onest.

"Accio Scepter." With another wave of his wand, the emperor's scepter flew into Daniel's hand. This scepter wasn't just a decorative item—it was the key to activating the supreme imperial weapon.

However, Daniel didn't activate the weapon just yet. There was no need. While the supreme imperial weapon might be formidable in the world of Akame ga Kill, it would be far less effective in a world like One Piece. Its massive size would make it an easy target for the many powerful individuals in that world.

Although its defenses were strong, they were only impressive in this world. In the One Piece universe, too many people would be capable of breaking through. The supreme imperial weapon's only real value to Daniel was for research.

Its attack style was similar to the pacifistas, relying on laser-based attacks, which greatly intrigued Daniel.

"You've frozen the entire palace," Daniel remarked as he exited the underground chamber, observing the icy surroundings. He shook his head slightly as he took in the frozen landscape, the buildings, and people trapped in ice.

"While the range is large, it's still not as powerful as Aokiji's abilities," Daniel muttered. Aokiji had been able to freeze an entire volcanic island in an instant. Theoretically, Esdeath could accomplish something similar, but her ice would shatter shortly after freezing, whereas Aokiji's would remain intact.

With the palace frozen, the empire's resistance was nearing its end. Thanks to Onest's reckless rule, few in the capital were truly loyal to the empire. Those who had been loyal had either been exiled to the frontlines or killed.

At this point, the streets of the capital were eerily empty. No one was foolish enough to go outside in such chaotic times. Anyone caught out would be considered fair game for the soldiers.

"Spare

 me! I had nothing to do with this!" Desperate pleas rang out occasionally as the Northern Army's soldiers rounded up targets.

With the capital under Northern Army control, Onest's faction and the remaining loyalists were being purged. This was a complete regime change, not merely an attempt to remove a corrupt minister.

In fact, it wasn't just Onest's supporters and loyalists being targeted. The underworld figures of the capital were also being wiped out.

Other forces might have tried to calm the populace by being lenient, but Daniel and Esdeath didn't care. Anyone who resisted would be eliminated.

The task of capturing these individuals was primarily handled by the Jaegers and Night Raid. Lubbock, Bulat, and Leone had their imperial weapons returned temporarily to aid Lan and Wave in the operation.

The capital had truly become a hell on earth. Families like the Aeryas, infamous for their cruelty, were numerous. Each one deserved nothing less than the deepest pits of hell. But since there was no such place in this world, Daniel had to play the role of the reaper, turning these captives into philosopher's stones.

"Prime Minister Onest, along with Gao Qi, Xigong, Yongguan, and Daoxuan, will be judged by the people." While Night Raid and the Jaegers carried out their missions, Daniel reviewed the list of captured imperial officials. Most would simply be executed, but Onest and his four closest confidants would face the public's judgment.

On the day of their execution, the capital's coliseum was packed. The citizens watching wore expressions of seething hatred as they gazed at the five kneeling figures.

"Form a line. One by one," an officer instructed. The execution was to be carried out by the public, with each person taking a turn. They could choose to strike any of the five.

"Don't aim for vital spots. Let them suffer for a while," the officer added. The first person to step forward was an elderly man, frail but filled with purpose.

"Yongguan, you beast!" Instead of targeting Onest, the old man headed straight for Yongguan. He ignored the dagger offered by the soldiers and used his trembling hand to gouge out Yongguan's eye, swallowing it whole on the spot.

Perhaps due to his advanced age, the old man's breath became labored after consuming the eye. Shortly after, he collapsed and died. But even in death, a smile of satisfaction remained on his face.

The old man's body was quietly removed, and the execution continued without interruption.

The entire process lasted three days. For three days, Onest and the others screamed in agony. Normally, they would have died long before that, but a doctor from the slums had used his medical skills to ensure they survived.

During those three days, the flesh of Onest and his cohorts was slowly eaten by the people. Their bones, after death, became trophies.

While all this unfolded, Daniel didn't bother to watch the executions. Instead, he was busy learning alchemy from Dotya.

The alchemy of this world was completely different from that of Fullmetal Alchemist. It was less about mysticism and more akin to modern science. Dotya was highly skilled in modifying objects, whether people or machines. She could even make adjustments to the supreme imperial weapon.

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