Rebellion 3
Translator: Cinder Translations
...
In an effort to avoid alerting the traitors, Paul's camp moved swiftly and with great caution. Even Paul himself, along with his bodyguard captain Victor and the intelligence officer Brandy, joined the preparations. The guards began piling up anything that could block arrows—wooden planks, wagons, crates, stones—around the perimeter of the camp.
Ladia held a bottle and sprinkled some unknown powder in different patterns across the camp. The parrot she had summoned flapped its wings and flew into the sky, disappearing into the distance under the cover of night.
After completing all the preparations they could under the circumstances, Victor ordered all the lights to be extinguished. The camp was instantly plunged into darkness.
However, the unusual activity at the camp did not go unnoticed by the traitors.
Inside Ferguson' tent, the lamps were still brightly lit. A group of people sat in a circle on the ground, many of them wearing armor.
"Grayman must have sensed something!"
Upon hearing a report from a servant that the camp had suddenly gone dark, Ferguson made this judgment immediately.
"Huh?" Old Walter panicked. "T-they're not planning to run away, are they?"
It wasn't time to act yet—they had planned to make their move at midnight, when most people in the camp would be fast asleep.
Old Walter hated anything that disrupted the plan, especially at such a sensitive moment. If the lord managed to escape, wouldn't they all face certain death?
"Lord Ferguson… What should we do?" the others asked one after another.
Though they had been full of ambition during their plotting, each swearing to behead the lord, now that the moment to act was drawing near, fear and panic had set in. After all, the Grayman family had ruled them for over a century, and since Paul Grayman took over, he had rapidly elevated his family's prestige, becoming a figure feared and respected by the major lords of the Northwest Bay, including Duke Fraule.
Some of them even began to wonder, How did I ever have the guts to join this conspiracy?
But they were already on the boat, and there was no turning back now.
In this situation, Ferguson, who was the only one with military experience, became the backbone of the rebels.
What a bunch of useless cowards! Ferguson cursed inwardly, seeing the expressions on his comrades' faces.
"What are you panicking for? The forest is full of our men and traps. Where could they possibly run to? Now, gather your forces and attack the lord's camp immediately!"
"Yes, Lord Ferguson!"
Once their leader gave the order, the panic in their hearts subsided, and they hurried off to assemble their forces.
...
Paul tightly gripped the pistol he used for self-defense, his palms drenched in sweat. He was hiding behind a wooden crate, poking his head out just enough to watch the pitch-black forest in front of him under the faint moonlight. The forest, which had appeared vibrant and full of life during the day, now seemed like a monster creeping closer to devour everything.
The green-haired witch was by his side. Sensing Paul's anxiety, she gently placed her hand on his back. Immediately, a warmth spread through him, easing his tension.
Paul's hunting rifle had already been handed to the best marksman among the guards, a young man named Anglim, who stood next to Victor, ready to snipe the most valuable targets on command.
"They're coming," Ladia warned.
A faint glow emanated from the witch's eyes, though Paul couldn't be sure if it was the effect of magic.
"Everyone, stay alert!" Victor growled in a low voice.
A few seconds later, everyone heard the rustling sounds coming from deep within the forest.
...
Meanwhile, in the barracks at Alden Town, the lights-out signal had already sounded, and the camp was shrouded in darkness, save for the faint lights at the guard posts.
The militiamen who had come for training were already in bed; they had been exhausted over the past two days.
Especially today, when the instructors had driven them to the brink of collapse, making them repeatedly reload and fire their weapons all day long, with the crackling sounds of musket fire ringing out across the camp.
Zane lay in bed, his ears filled with the thunderous snores of his comrades. Though his body was weary, he hadn't fallen asleep, feeling strangely restless, as if something bad was about to happen tonight.
Damn this ominous feeling, he muttered to himself, pulling the blanket tighter around him. I've got early morning training tomorrow. I need to sleep.
One sheep, two sheep, three sheep...
He began counting sheep, imagining a flock of them jumping over a fence in his mind.
"Doo-doo-da-doo—doo-doo—doo-doo-da-doo—doo-doo!"
Suddenly, he heard the shrill sound of a bugle.
What? Am I even dreaming about emergency drills now? Guess my brain's still stuck in training mode after all that hard work today.
"Doo-doo-da-doo—doo-doo—doo-doo-da-doo—doo-doo!"
The bugle continued to blare in his ears.
Zane sat bolt upright. Wait! This isn't a dream. Someone's actually sounding the alarm.
That sound... it's the emergency assembly call!
"Get up! Everyone, get up! Emergency assembly!"
Zane shouted at the top of his lungs as he jumped out of bed to start putting on his clothes.
"Assembly? Assembly for breakfast? Ow!" Mackie mumbled sleepily, until Zane yanked him awake.
"Quit dreaming, it's a real emergency assembly. Hurry up and get dressed."
Thanks to Zane's efforts, all eight men in their dormitory were up in less than a minute.
Five minutes later, they charged out of the dormitory and rushed towards the training grounds.
On the training field, Zane and his group found their usual position from the day's drills. Huh? Is our dorm the first to arrive?
Soon, more people came running in from the dormitory area.
"Form up! Just like we did during the day!" Zane shouted to the militiamen from Tata Town.
Though there was some initial chaos, within half an hour the militia had formed ranks and waited for the instructors to arrive.
Lieutenant Beluga walked proudly onto the field and stepped up onto the platform in front of the militia formation.
"Brave warriors! You've assembled swiftly, proving that your hard work during the day has paid off. I—Lieutenant Beluga—am proud of you!"
"But tonight's emergency assembly is not a drill. Tonight, you will shoulder a responsibility great enough to be written into the history of Alden!"
A great responsibility? Zane's sense of unease grew stronger.
Lieutenant Beluga's voice became grave as he continued.
"Our great and merciful lord—Paul Grayman—has been attacked tonight!"
Boom! The field erupted in chaos.
(End of the Chapter)
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Translated 4 Series, 1.65K+ Chapters and 2.01M+ Words.